Montrose, COLO.— Montrose County Health and Human Services (HHS) is proud to team up with the BABY & ME – Tobacco Free Program to offer help for pregnant women who smoke. Tobacco use during pregnancy is a known cause of birth defects, premature births, underweight babies, and sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Quitting smoking greatly reduces the health risks to the mother and baby.
HHS Staff is now trained and certified to offer the BABY & ME Tobacco Free Program™ to help pregnant women quit smoking and stay quit. Danace Arthur, Health Educator for Montrose County, states “The BABY & ME – Tobacco Free Program™ is researched-based and proven effective to help pregnant women quit smoking and maintain smoking cessation throughout the postpartum period and beyond.”
Laurie Adams, BABY & ME – Tobacco Free Program Executive Director and program creator, provided the technical support and training to Montrose County and certified one staff member to implement and enroll women into the program. “Montrose County Health and Human Services is a perfect fit for the program,” Ms. Adams states. “They provide services to a large number of prenatal women and they support their patients’ quit attempts. The greatest gift a woman can give her baby is a tobacco-free pregnancy and a tobacco-free home."
Pregnant women who enroll in the program receive counseling support and resources to help them quit smoking. Upon successfully quitting and staying quit, enrolled participants are eligible for FREE diapers during the prenatal period and up to 12 months following the birth of their baby. This program employs cessation methods and guidelines set forth by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and its effectiveness has been documented through research.
The BABY & ME – Tobacco Free Program, conducted at Montrose County Health and Human Services 1845 S. Townsend Ave. Montrose, CO 81401, is generously funded by Rocky Mount Health Foundation. Montrose County Health and Human Services’ goal is to enroll at least 50 pregnant smoking women into the program. The BABY & ME – Tobacco Free Program is in 18 states nationwide and has enrolled over 12,000 women. Partners in the community where Baby & Me Tobacco Free Services can also be found are with Hilltop Family Resources at 970-252-7745. For more information on the program or how to enroll contact Montrose County Health Educator, Danace Arthur at 970-252-5011 or go to www.babyandmetobaccofree.org.