Tobacco Cessation
Tobacco-based cessation services work best when they are well integrated in a country’s health care system, and supported by consistent funding and strong policies. We partner with governments and civil society organizations to establish, improve and implement sustainable, evidence-based tobacco cessation services at the population level.
Providing Hands-on Financial and Technical Assistance
Vital Strategies’ Cessation Grants Program funds projects that fill an identified gap in a country’s tobacco cessation efforts.
More than 60% of tobacco users worldwide want to quit but 70% of them lack access to evidence-based help. Through our Cessation Grants Program, Vital Strategies funds population-level interventions that sustainably advance evidence-based cessation services. Specifically, we support national and subnational toll-free quitlines, SMS- and app-based mCessation systems for mobile phones, brief advice counseling, and the integration of cessation services into other programs such as tuberculosis treatment or HIV services.
We partner with key stakeholders, such as national or subnational governments, to develop services and integrate them within a country’s existing healthcare structure. We also provide technical assistance for the development of strong national policies and guidelines that enable cessation services to be effective and impactful in the long term.
Our focus on population-level approaches makes sure that cessation services have the furthest reach possible across a country’s population.
Strengthening the Tobacco Cessation Ecosystem
We prioritize filling gaps in a country’s tobacco cessation ecosystem, an approach that acknowledges that the impact, reach and effectiveness of tobacco cessation interventions are maximized when different services, such as quitlines, mCessation and brief advice, are well integrated and supported by consistent funding and strong policies.
Implementing Population-Level Cessation Services Across the Globe
Since the program’s inception in 2023, more than 32,000 healthcare workers across five countries have been trained in delivering brief tobacco cessation advice with the support of a cessation grant.
Strengthening the Tobacco Cessation Ecosystem
Evidence-based cessation services work best when integrated and coordinated with each other, and with other health programs and tobacco control policies. Read the report and watch our launch webinar (passcode: .+vJv8wH) to learn more about the ecosystem approach and examples of the approach in action.
