You're reading: New national service to help smokers quit to be launched next year

Up to 1.5 million Ukrainians attempt to quit smoking each year, but with a shortage of professional help, many relapse and start smoking again — imperiling their health and cutting their lives short.

Now a new national service is being developed to assist smokers with quitting.

The service will have two key features — a hotline where smokers can seek advice from consultants and an interactive website with a live chat function.

A joint initiative of Ukraine’s Ministry of Health and the World Health Organisation, with funding from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, the project will be carried out by NGO Life.

The project has been in development since August, with the hotline and website expected to go live in March.

This was announced at a press conference in Kyiv on Nov. 17, which marks world no smoking day.

Life projects coordinator Kateryna Rymarenko said there were currently no professional national services in Ukraine to assist smokers with quitting.

She said the project will not only provide a phone and website service for smokers but will be used to collect data and information that will help tailor the system to its users.

Results from the nationwide survey of smokers conducted by the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology survey, showed 77 percent of respondents believe such a service will provide the necessary assistance needed to quit.

Otto Stoyko, chief doctor at the Kyiv City Health Center, said tobacco use is a major risk factor for many fatal diseases.

Yet only around 2 percent of those who have attempted to quit have received assistance or advice from a doctor.

Oleg Dudin, chief specialist of coordination with other central executive authorities and ministries of Ukraine’s Public Health Office, said it is understood that preventing a disease is cheaper than curing it, with one of main factors of cardiovascular disease being smoking.

“If the smoker will have access to professional help, it will increase his chances to stop smoking. Therefore, the development of the service of quitting is extremely important,” he said.