In 2001 the Northwestern Ontario Regional Cancer Centre (NWORCC) established the region’s first comprehensive, evidence-based smoking cessation (or stop-smoking) program.

Now, six years later, the Nicotine Dependence Centre (NDC) at Regional Cancer Care is an effective, fully-supported program that is free of charge for cancer patients and their family members. There is a small fee for the general public, but all are welcome. Family physicians are encouraged to refer patients to the NDC, and smokers are welcome to refer themselves as well.

How the NDC works

At RCC, every cancer patient who smokes is identified and provided with a smoking cessation intervention or with a brief intervention to help motivate them to quit.

Here we use a “staged” approach, based on a smoker’s readiness to quit. About 20 per cent of smokers are believed to be in the “action” stage, ready to embark on a smoking cessation program.

Once in the program, a person can expect a number of 30-minute to one hour counselling sessions throughout the initial 4-6 weeks of the program. Depending on the person, follow-up visits can continue for as long as a year afterward, depending on their need.

A number of health care providers who are specially trained in smoking cessation work with the NDC. A patient will have access to individual assessment, counselling and group sessions, and follow-up calls to prevent relapse. He or she will also work with a counsellor to develop problem-solving skills and work with Nicotine Replacement Therapy.

Click here to meet the Quit Coach.

Why is the NDC important to the cancer program?

The NDC is based on clinical programs in the U.S., where smoking is treated as a chronic condition requiring treatment.

During the summer of 1994, a chart audit and needs assessment were done at NWORCC. The chart audit revealed that 59 per cent of patients seen at NWORCC smoked at one point in their lives.

There is also well-documented evidence that smoking rates in Northwestern Ontario are higher than the provincial average. Over 27 per cent of men and more than 30 per cent of women in our region smoke. This is nearly double the Ontario average for women smokers. (Cancer Care Ontario).

For more information, please call (807) 684-7311 or toll free at (877) 696-7223 ext. 7311.