Tobacco control media for Mother’s Day – 4/5/13

Q: Arkansas is looking for creative ideas for a Mother's Day press release. Please share ideas for any press conferences your organization has held surrounding encouraging pregnant women to quit smoking or protect their families from secondhand smoke. Please share any television, radio, social media and earned media tools you used, and where possible, share templates or examples that Arkansas and others could adapt for use in their own state.

A:

1. Nebraska: Attached are a couple of swiss cheese news releases that NE has issued in the past for Mother’s Day.  If you have any questions, please let me know.
    
   • [NAME OF CITY] Restaurants Go Smoke-Free for Mother’s Day
   • Mother’s Day is a Time to Honor Moms Who Have Quit Smoking
      
2. North Carolina: Before 2010 we used this data to help local programs create op-eds related to secondhand smoke exposure in restaurants. The same data could easily be used to create similar opinion pieces on funding and other issues.
    
3. Washington: Here are some materials we used for our old Quit for You Quit for Two campaign, including a script for our state health officer that we created a short video with:
    
   • Quit for You, Quit for Two Campaign Announcement email
   • Campaign flyer with quitline number
   • Memo: campaign plan
   • Script for state health officer
   • “Pregnant and Smoking?” poster, featuring Native American family
      
   Unfortunately, we don’t have great evaluation results on the impact of the campaign and we still have about the same number of pregnant women smoking.
    
   Something else to consider using is this 4X4 notepaper (available in English and Spanish) that we developed with WIC for their WIC check visits.  These have been used regularly and the tobacco program no longer pays for these, as WIC has taken ownership of them.
    
   Note that this needs to be an integrated message with nutrition, but getting the quitline number and an SHS message on it was possible when it was combined with the fruit and vegetable message. Translating into Spanish is always an interesting journey, but one that is worth the trouble.

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TCN Response:

CDC’s tobacco control events calendar includes Mother’s Day materials that are updated each year to encourage mothers to quit smoking and protect their children from secondhand smoke. This year’s materials include a feature article, “Celebrate Moms Who Protect Children’s Health,” that presents key information about the harms of tobacco use and exposure to secondhand smoke and shares the stories of three moms from CDC’s Tips From Former Smokers campaign; buttons; information on OSH’s Smoking & Tobacco Use website; as well as social media activities on Facebook and Twitter and YouTube.

The Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids sends out materials each year in conjunction with Mother’s Day. The fact sheets include state-specific data on tobacco use and related harms for women; a Women’s Health and Smoking fact sheet; and a Mother’s Day fact sheet with tips for Moms to help keep their kids from smoking. More fact sheets specific to women and girls can be found here.

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Other Response:

1. Baby and Me – Tobacco Free Program: The Baby & Me – Tobacco Free Program is an evidenced-based prenatal/postpartum cessation program.
    
   We have had tremendous success with our quit rates and are administering the program in many states across the nation. We will be beginning new programs in Louisiana and Indiana this year, with Illinois to follow. The program helps pregnant quit smoking and when they stay tobacco free after the baby is born, they receive free diapers - a great incentive for new moms and proven to help improve birth outcomes.
    
   Visit our website at babyandmetobaccofree.org, for more information about the program.
    
   With Mother’s Day fast approaching, we used the linked information on postcards and print materials/press releases in New York State.
    
2. CDC/Office on Smoking and Health: We would encourage states to consider both cessation messages and messages about protecting their families from secondhand smoke.
    
   States that are considering holding a press conference or event in conjunction with Mother’s Day might want to consider using resources or ads from the CDC’s Tips From Former Smokers ad campaign, or even inviting one of the spokespeople from the campaign to participate in your event. Tiffany (one of the spokespeople) will be highlighted in the Mother’s Day materials from CDC. Other possible spokespeople from the campaign who could be highlighted include Terri (a mother and grandmother) and Christine, who has done advocacy work in Pennsylvania.  Contact the TCN for a referral to the staff at CDC who can provide more information about working with Tips ad participants.

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