Health Care : Current Reviews

Smoking continues to be a significant public health challenge

Modern Trends in Health Economics, Healthcare & Technologies

May 20 2019 Venice, Italy

Ian Mullen

Scottish Health Matters LTD, UK

Keynote: Health Care Current Reviews

Abstract:

Ireland was the first country in the world to ban smoking in public places, and Scotland was an early adopter of this legislation. In 2005, Scotland becomes the first UK country to ban all smoking in indoor public places. A wide range of European countries subsequently followed this lead, albeit that smoking bans have created some potentially unforeseen socio-economic effects. Inevitably, the current focus has moved to a more realistic assessment of the effectiveness of the various smoking cessation options. For some time, Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) has been the principal means of helping smokers to quit. In more recent times, effective pharmacotherapies have become available. Various wide-ranging assessments of patient safety issues relating to pharmacotherapies have been carried out, and these will also form part of the presentation. A more recent development has involved the introduction of vaping, or the use of electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes) to create nicotine vapour. This innovation allows smokers to inhale nicotine without apparently facing the carcinogenic risks associated with traditional cigarettes. However, no effective assessment of the possible longer-term risks of e-cigarettes has been undertaken, and in particular the chemicals used in vaping have not been assessed for direct human exposure over a longer period. Nevertheless, for many people and even for some health authorities e-cigarettes are now being seen as something of a universal panacea. Is this a valid approach? What do the latest statistics tell us? We shall also examine the current state of smoking cessation services in the UK, in the light of government objectives to achieve a smoke-free environment by the 2030s. Smoking prevalence has significantly diminished since legislation was introduced, but it is still a disturbing fact that tobacco consumption is responsible for nearly 700,000 deaths in the EU every year. In fact, the European region of WHO, with only 15% of the world’s population, faces nearly one third of the worldwide burden of tobaccorelated diseases. Smokers continue to suffer more from poor health (as they are more at risk of cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases) and half of them die prematurely (14 years on average). This presentation will consider the options for public health smoking cessation services and the challenges faced in attempting to further reduce the incidence of cigarette smoking.

Biography :

Ian Mullen is a qualified pharmacist who has owned and operated a number of pharmacies. As chairman of Community Pharmacy Scotland, he led UK Government contract negotiations on behalf of all 1250 pharmacies in Scotland. Ian has worked closely with a number of Scottish Health Ministers in a nonexecutive role and has an extensive understanding of the UK public sector. He chaired 2 NHS Trusts, and from 2002-12 he was chairman of a Scottish health authority employing 8,000 staff. He has chaired many boards, review bodies and public and private sector organisations. As chairman of an NHS Board, Ian led the development of an innovative strategy to revolutionise healthcare delivery for a 300,000 population, and establish a new 860-bed hospital, incorporating revolutionary robotic technology. The hospital was opened by Queen Elizabeth in 2011. Ian has acted as a public sector bid adviser for several large construction companies and is chairman of a joint public/private is a qualified Executive Coach and Mentor with a focus on leadership attributes. He presented on transformational leadership at the inaugural conference of the UK NHS Foundation Trust Network and has presented on a range of healthcare topics at various venues in Australia, Spain, and Switzerland and across the UK. He has operated a healthcare focused strategic public affairs consultancy for a number of years, providing advice to a range of FTSE 100 and FTSE 250 clients as well as global organisations. Ian was appointed OBE by Her Majesty the Queen in 2005 and has been one of Her Majesty’s Deputy Lieutenants since 2002.

E-mail: ian@ianmullenassociates.co.uk