31 May 2021 was World No Tobacco Day. This year the theme was “Commit to Quit”. A group of paediatricians and paediatrics residents from the University Hospital of Pisa, led by Dr. Maria Elisa Di Cicco (paediatrician and researcher) and Alessandra Beni (Paediatrics resident), who were awarded a Healthy Lungs for Life (HLfL) grant, led a series of educational projects on the topic of exposure to environmental tobacco smoke in childhood. The activities were supported by SIMRI – Società Italiana per le Malattie Respiratorie infantili (Italian Society of Childhood Respiratory Illnesses).

Webinar

The group held a 3-hour long webinar entitled Impegnarsi a smettere, anche per i bambini (Commit to quit, also for children) on Zoom which was streamed live on YouTube.

The webinar focused on the health effects of tobacco smoke exposure in children and the potential risks from e-cigarettes, as well as on the available options for quitting smoking. Speakers were national and international experts such as Prof. Fabio Midulla (Roma, SIMRI – President), Prof. Stefania La Grutta (Palermo), Prof. Diego Peroni (Pisa) and Dr. Francesco Pistelli (Pisa). You can watch the webinar here.

Online outreach

The team created a Facebook page, a YouTube channel and a website dedicated to the project. They also created an online survey which had 260 participants. The survey showed that 1 in 3 smokers were not aware of third hand smoke. They thought that smoking outside the home was safe for the people they live with and most of the participants did not know about the options available to help them stop smoking.

Educational video

The team created an educational video entitled Quante cose fai ogni giorno per i tuoi bambini? (How many things do you do for your children every day?). The video (as well as all the other projects) has been shared through SIMRI and the Hospital’s social media channels and website along with the website of the Italian Society for Pediatrics.

Printed brochure

1,000 copies of the printed brochure were distributed on 31 May in the two hospitals of Pisa. You can download the PDF here.

For any questions please contact:  giornatasenzatabacco2021@gmail.com