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Quit Doc    

Quit Doc Smoking Cessation Program-  has developed a safe and effective way to quit smoking that far exceeds that of nicotine replacement therapy (inhalers, gums, patches) or Zyban®. In addition, you have your own personal support system, composed of a pulmonologist (lung specialist), respiratory therapist and counselors.

The Quit Doc Smoking Cessation Program administers the SMART™ Shot. It is a new and improved smoking cessation shot consisting of a combination of two medicines that have been around for over a decade and are FDA-approved for indications other than quitting smoking. The shot is designed to help ease the physical withdrawal associated with quitting smoking.The Quit Doc Program also involves weekly counseling conference calls. If you have a question about the program, learn more by visiting their web-site at: www.quitdoc.com

This program also qualifies for the SCG incentive program (the registration form can accessed by clicking on the "sign up" icon above). Upon completion of the program, employees are eligible to receive a $25 incentive deposited directly into their paycheck for participating. This clinic is covered under both SCG’s HMO & PPO insurance providers. HMO coverage requires a $25 co-pay while the POS and AHF is covered 100% under the preventive benefit. Questions about coverage can be emailed to Angela Deem-Gustafson at adeem@scgov.net or you can call her at 941-650-9908.

To arrange for an appointment call 1-866-355-QUIT.
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 QuitLine

            Click here to find out what ACS has to offer

Quitline, a free service of the American Cancer Society, provides a telephonic counselor support system to help you design a plan to quit. The QuitLine can be reached by calling 1- 800- ACS-2345.  A smoking quiz can be found on the right hand menu of their page. After the quiz is completed the site estimates your level of addiction and the best way for you to quit.
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The Freedom From Smoking®,  program provided by the American Lung Association, is considered the "gold standard" of group-setting, peer-support smoking cessation programs. This is a free online smoking cessation program. You can learn more about this program and how to sign up by clicking here.
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What is hypnosis?

According to the Mayo Clinic, hypnosis, also referred to as hypnotherapy or hypnotic suggestion, is an altered state of consciousness. This state of consciousness is usually achieved with the help of a hypnotherapist and is different from your everyday awareness. When you're under hypnosis:

 Your attention is more focused
 You're more responsive to suggestions
 You're more open and less critical or disbelieving

The purpose of hypnosis as a therapeutic technique is to help you gain more control over your behavior, emotions or physical well-being. Read more...

Effectiveness
According to researchers at Ohio State University smokers who are hopeful that hypnosis will help them kick their habit need to temper their expectations, according to new research. A review of nearly five dozen studies showed that while hypnosis may have some effect as an anti-smoking treatment, it is by no means an end-all and be-all treatment for smoking cessation.

"Giving hypnosis the stamp of a well-established treatment for smoking cessation is premature," said Joseph Green, a study co-author and associate professor of psychology at Ohio State University's Lima campus.

The research appears in a recent issue of the International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis. Green conducted the research with Steven Jay Lynn, of the State University of New York at Binghamton.

The researchers compiled the results of 59 studies. They concluded that smokers who underwent hypnosis fared better in terms of abstaining from smoking than did smokers who had no intervention. However, it was difficult to determine whether hypnosis had any benefit above and beyond other treatments - such as behavior modification - that were often of considerable benefit to patients.

"Many times, hypnosis is packaged with other, more comprehensive treatments," Green said. "So it's extremely difficult to tease apart and determine which individual therapy got the smoker to quit."
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