Advancing health equity through policy change: The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa's journey to smoke free spaces

The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa fully supported smoking cessation efforts for over two decades, however, smoke free policies were not supported at the same level. The Wiidookowishin (Help Me) commercial tobacco cessation program recently became the catalyst for educating community members about the negative effects of tobacco abuse and secondhand smoke. Successful implementation of this commercial tobacco cessation program encouraged community members to advocate for smoke free spaces within Tribal Government buildings. This presentation will describe key elements of the culturally tailored program and the newly approved smoke free policy. It will also highlight factors that contributed to successful policy change across the reservation, including the availability of smoking cessation resources and staff commitment to reducing commercial tobacco use among community members and employees. Other key factors include ongoing surveillance of attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs related to tobacco prevention and control programs and policies; better understanding of the financial impact commercial tobacco use has on the Fond du Lac Insurance Company Self Insured Employee Health Plan; and the increased awareness of the major conclusions of the Surgeon General report on The Health Consequences of Involuntary Exposure to Tobacco Smoke.