Meet Our Team: Sarah Holbrey

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     Sarah Holbrey is one of our Stop Smoking Advisor's. We interviewed her about her role in the community with the Leeds Stop Smoking Service.

How long have you been doing the role?

I started working for the trust in May 2014 and was new to the role of a Smoking Cessation Practitioner.

   

   Tell me a bit about your background

     I studied psychology and health psychology at university which ties in nicely with the health promotion and behaviour change aspects of my current role. I previously worked as a healthcare assistant in a low-secure mental health unit for Bradford District Care Trust and more recently as a researcher in dementia care research at the University of Bradford.

     What brought you to work at the Stop Smoking Service?

     I realised I did not want a career purely in research, but instead wanted to work in a more applied way, working closely with clients and being at the heart of an intervention where I can see the direct benefit an intervention has on a person’s well-being.

   Why did you want to work in the community?

I liked the idea of working across different settings and thought it would give me more opportunities to work with a broader range of client groups too.  

   Describe a typical day

     A typical day is usually a mix of clinical work and admin. If I have a clinic that involves setting up any equipment and resources needed for the session and welcoming both new and ongoing clients where I will discuss options with them, measure their Carbon Monoxide levels and support them to plan coping strategies in their quit journey. The admin side involves restocking my resource bag with things like record sheets, leaflets and booklets, answering emails, ensuring electronic records are up-to-date and other bits and bobs like faxing treatment requests.

   What area of your work do you find most rewarding? 

I love the clinical aspect of my role. It’s wonderful to see the changes in clients as they progress along their quit journey. Quite often people are nervous at first or unsure of what to expect from the service, or are feeling a bit low in confidence if they have relapsed. It’s so rewarding to see them grow in confidence once they achieve their quit day and I can see them changing in front of me, for the better, both physically and emotionally. And of course, knowing that I just might have saved someone’s life, as sadly, one in two people who smoke will die from a smoking related illness.

How would you like your career to progress?

I want to pursue a career in public health and health psychology so I can have a more direct influence on developing effective and evidence-based interventions. This of course means more studying, but I'm always keen for a challenge!  

Stoptober

In the past couple of weeks the trust's Stoptober activities have ramped up a gear in preparation for the start of the campaign this Wednesday. Firstly we held Stoptober awareness raising sessions at Leeds General Infirmary and St James Hospital. People were able to stop by the stall, talk to one of the advisor's or attend a drop in session. 

Maree with Steven and Richard

On the weekend following this, a couple of colleagues and I plus my youngest son headed to Briggate to join in with the Stoptober roadshow. At the roadshow there was two guys (pictured), Steven and Richard, who were great at bringing the crowds over, something to do with their outfits perhaps. We had two big wheels which could be used to show how much money people could save and the health benefits of stopping smoking over different time periods. We have similar wheels ourselves that we show to clients, but not on the same scale.

We got the opportunity to talk to lots of people and let them know what Leeds NHS Stop Smoking Service do, how we can help and how they can access our services. We also signed lots of people up there and then to come to clinics. 

Lots of people had carbon monoxide tests done and the results for some people were quite eye opening. It led them to think about what they were doing to their bodies when they were smoking. Carbon monoxide (CO) is a poisonous gas, it is found in car exhausts and faulty heating systems (when heating systems breakdown), and has the potential to be fatal. CO is also found in cigarettes.

Dot takes a carbon monoxide
reading from Paul. 

It causes the blood to thicken, become sticky and hardens the arteries. It can contribute to strokes and heart attacks, so you can see why a lot of people were concerned after having a reading taken.

As a result of the roadshows and awareness event, I have seen an increase in clients at the Kirkgate Market clinic as a result, which I am delighted about. Most of my clinics are pretty busy at the moment as more and more people prepare to quit in Stoptober.  

Photos of our activities can be found on Leeds Community Healthcare NHS Trust Facebook page. 

Maree Diamond

Stop Smoking Advisor 

The life of a Stop Smoking Advisor

Paul, who works at Leeds Teaching Hospital,
tests his carbon monoxide levels at a recent
Stoptober event the team held at the hospital. 

When I tell people I'm a Stop Smoking Advisor, they tend to react in one of three ways: firstly, surprise and interest; secondly 'So you're the sergeant major?'; thirdly, 'What a waste of time that is. People should just stop!'.  The first is very gratifying, the second slightly irritating and the third highly annoying.

People are often surprised. It is a different kind of job, helping smokers to disentangle themselves from a substance at least as addictive as heroin that they have unintentionally, and quite legally, woven into a poisonous web that affects the very fabric of their lives.

The fact is - it's a fascinating job.  I meet people of every age, educational background and culture.  I see some of them struggle against enormous odds to get rid of the habit that is literally trying to kill them.  There are individuals who find it incredibly easy to stop smoking and wish they'd done it two decades sooner, and those who simply can't imagine a life without cigarettes.  It never ceases to amaze me is the sheer guts and determination of so many people to set themselves free from their addiction.  Not everyone succeeds, but many do.  And when they turn the corner, perhaps after numerous attempts, their pride in their achievement is a joy to see.  For some, even people in their 50s and 60s, the simple congratulatory document that we present to them is the first certificate of any kind that they have ever received.

In future blog posts,  I hope to give a flavour of what our day-to-day work entails.  No two days are ever the same.

Smokers who come to sessions run by the Stop Smoking Service are 4 times more likely to quit cigarettes for good than if they try to do it on their own.  We also help people to stop using other forms of tobacco such as smokeless (chewing) tobacco like paan and gutkha, and shisha (waterpipe).

We are a team of friendly, experienced proffessionals who are here to help people give up tobacco.  Together with the Healthy Lifestyle Service, we currently run 46 weekly Stop Smoking sessions around Leeds.

To access support, or for more information, ring Leeds NHS Stop Smoking Service on 0800 169 4219 or check out  your nearest clinic here.  At some clinics no apointment is needed, you can just come along.

Dot Read
Stop Smoking Advisor

Stoptober starts in September

Maree at the Leeds Market drop in clinic

I’m Maree and I am a Smoking Cessation Practitioner with Leeds Stop Smoking Service. I joined the team in February. Our service is city wide and we provide 1 to 1 sessions, drop ins and groups. Most of my clinics are in West Leeds, namely Armley, Bramley, Pudsey and Wortley but I also do a drop in clinic in Kirkgate Market (Leeds city centre market) on a Friday morning. More details about the drop in here.

We provide help and support to those who want to stop smoking and we can help our clients to access the treatments they need to help them stop. Research has shown that using NRT (nicotine replacement therapy) or one of the pharmacological aids (champix or zyban) plus the help of the NHS, people are four times more likely to stop smoking than if they were to go alone.

The team supports the national stop smoking month long campaign, known as Stoptober. The campaign begins on the 1st October and runs for the whole month. Even though it’s only September, we’re already getting prepared. The team will be on the Jubilee Wing at Leeds General Infirmary between 1pm and 4pm on Monday 15 September and the Gledhow Wing at St James Hospital between 9.30am and 2.30pm on Friday 19 September. You might think we’re got our months confused but we want to get people interested and motivated in advance so that they are up and running for the start of Stoptober. We'll be there to give advice but people can also begin the course there and then and access the treatment. 
  
As well as these events, we’ll be putting up displays across our clinic sites. The very helpful lady on the community reception at Thornton Medical Practice, has kindly said she would like to arrange a display on one of her notice boards, solely to promote stop smoking and Stoptopber. So I am really excited about that and I am going to rustle up some resources for her to get her notice board all swanky. When she has done it, we’ll post some photo’s on the trust’s facebook page.  

Maree Diamond, Stop Smoking Practitioner