Smokefree Living for a Healthy Family: Partnering for prevention with early childhood programs

The Tobacco Program at Public Health Seattle & King County increases community access to quality cessation resources by collaborating for systems-change with organizations that reach high tobacco-use populations. In 2007-2008 the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and the Tobacco Program are partnering with ten Head Start and Early Childhood Education Assistance Programs (ECEAP) in King County to provide training on motivational interviewing, tobacco intervention, and community cessation resources. DOH brings the experience of working with the American Legacy Foundation on a similar project in neighboring Pierce County. Both the Head Start and ECEAP programs serve low-income populations and have staff skilled in family-centered promotion of child wellness and school readiness. Baseline assessment shows that programs are eager to participate and can incorporate tobacco into existing services. The project includes on-site training for each participating program, assistance developing a program-specific plan to reduce household smoking and secondhand smoke exposure, and available funding to support the plan. A process evaluation of the project will inform implementation in other counties in Washington.