The U.S. Surgeon General recently announced the availability of a new report on tobacco use and health. The report, The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress, came out on the 50th anniversary of the landmark 1964 report linking smoking and ill health, including lung cancer and heart disease. Acting U.S. Deputy Surgeon General Scott Giberson commissioned a video on the importance of tobacco control. The video includes messages urging pharmacists and other health care providers to become more knowledgeable about smoking cessation techniques and to engage in new activities to advance public health. 

As I mentioned in my February 5 blog post, I lost my father to lung cancer, most likely caused from a lifetime of smoking. I know that many of you have a personal story about the dangers of tobacco use for the health of our friends and loved ones. “If they only knew,” they would quit smoking, right? Yet we see over and over again that even though most of the world knows that smoking can be deadly, the habit persists.

Pharmacists have only barely scratched the surface of our potential contribution to public health. Yes, we have the numerous tobacco cessation products on our shelves, but patients need more than our products. Patients need our help—to instruct, to coach, to counsel, to support their efforts. And pharmacists, as capable providers, need the support of our health care system. Keep up the fight! Please join me in sharing this report and video.