HAWC extinguishes smokers one by one

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Maurice A. Hodges
  • 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
MCCONNELL AIR FORCE BASE, Kan. --  The 22nd Medical Support Squadron Health and Wellness Center, more commonly referred to as the HAWC, began a tobacco cessation class Nov. 14.

A minimum of 10 participates will participate in the four-week long class. The class meets for an hour each week.

In the first week, participants are expected to reduce their smoking habit by 40 percent. The pharmacy staff will then go over medication for smoking cessation during the second week, and the students establish a quitting day on the third week. In the final week, the participants review all the steps they need to take to break their addiction.

"Behavioral modification was a big thing," said Master Sgt. Ronald Flack, 22nd Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs superintendent. "We learned how to be non-smokers, what our smoking triggers are and how to find ways to avoid them."

According to the Air Force Instruction 40-102, tobacco degrades the state of military readiness and the health of military personnel. To help participants maintain their military readiness and achieve success in the program, the HAWC offers the tobacco cessation class in a group setting.

"We found that when people are going through the same thing at the same time, they feed off each other and everyone brings something different to the table," said Laura Markuly, 22nd MDSS public health educator. "They talk about how long they have been using tobacco, how many times they have tried to quit and their reasons for wanting to quit."

If people do not have time to attend the class, the HAWC suggests getting support through the Kansas Tobacco Quitline (1-800-QUIT-NOW). The hotline is for those who want to quit now or want to get information for someone they know.

For national support to quit the habit, the American Cancer Society designated Nov. 15 as the Great American Smokeout, which encourages smokers to make a plan to quit or to plan in advance and quit smoking that day. 

For more information on programs the HAWC offers, call (316) 759-6024.