| Unique Collaboration Helps Milwaukee Residents Quit
UW-CTRI is partnering with the Salvation Army and St. Vincent de Paul Society on a project to help residents in Milwaukee Zip code 53212 quit smoking. Most people in this neighborhood have low incomes and limited health care. Bruce Christiansen, Erin TerBeek and Chris Hollenback attended the most recent meeting in July at Vincent Family Resource Center in Milwaukee.
The meeting was attended by several community residents—some who smoke, some who don’t—who gave opinions on how best to get the word out about how and why to quit. |
|
Caleb Hutchins shares promotional ideas with other Zip Code Project participants July 16 in Milwaukee. |
The majority called for ads with shocking or attention-grabbing images with minimal text. The group is creating posters for building windows and to hand out at events in order to develop awareness that the majority of residents in 53212 are choosing to be smokefree. Outdoor advertising might also be imployed.
The project, funded for three years, is set to roll out in three stages. Since many residents feel smoking is normal, the first stage of the campaign will focus on why to quit—identifying benefits and de-normalizing smoking. Stage two will focus on boosting residents’ confidence to quit and awareness of the tools to help them succeed. Stage three will be helping those who are interested in quitting get the help they need.
It's all made possible by a grant from the Wisconsin Partnership Program of the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
“We hope this program will continue in the future,” said Bruce, “it’s just a matter of how that will come to pass. We need the resources to fund it.” Bruce also stated that it’s nice to have a local presence within the community to augment statewide programs like the Quit Line.
Milwaukee Outreach Specialist Mary Balistreri has been instrumental in bringing community members and the Poverty Network together to help launch the project.
For more on a key Zip code collaborator, Jeannie Berry-Matos, click here.
For more on getting
help to quit smoking, visit our Smokers
section. To
access our news story archives, click
here.
|
