SVH Earns Silver Level For Tobacco-Free Efforts

Date: 11/12/2021

Northern Light Sebasticook Valley Hospital has been recognized for meeting the Silver level for efforts to prohibit smoking and tobacco use on campus and addressing patient tobacco use.
The award is part of the annual Gold Star Standards of Excellence Hospital and Healthcare Organization Program and the MaineHealth Center for Tobacco Independence’s Breathe Easy Initiative. Thirty-two hospitals, eight healthcare organizations, and one individual Gold Star Champions were recognized for efforts to address tobacco use and secondhand smoke exposure. 

This is the ninth year Sebasticook Valley Hospital has participated in the initiative and been awarded showing a longstanding commitment to addressing tobacco use and exposure.
Award levels are based on best practice criteria such as a smoke and tobacco-free campus policy, annual screening for tobacco use, referral to tobacco treatment and supporting employee education related to tobacco treatment. 

“We applaud the ongoing efforts of Maine hospitals and healthcare organizations to address tobacco use, secondhand smoke exposure and nicotine dependence by meeting the Gold Star Standards of Excellence,” says Kristen McAuley, Tobacco Prevention Services Director for the Center for Tobacco Independence. She continued, “Addressing tobacco use has continued importance during the current pandemic, as the U.S. CDC states that being a current or former cigarette smoker increases your risk of severe illness from COVID-19.”

For more information about the Gold Star Standards of Excellence, please visit BreatheEasyMaine.org/GSSE. The program is funded by Maine Prevention Services , an initiative through the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention working across the state to impact tobacco, substance use, and obesity.