NAQC’s Top Resources and Upcoming Activities
Dear Colleagues,
We would like to thank our members and partners for their ongoing support. We hope NAQC’s work has contributed to your success and we look forward to launching great new projects in the year ahead!
Below are links to important resources from the past year, update on upcoming activities, and webpages and web features you should know about!
Best and Promising Practices / Learning Community
Research and Evaluation
Public Private Partnership / Medicaid
Top Webpages and Web Features You Should Know About
Best and Promising Practices / Learning Community
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Please contact Laurie Krupski, Senior Program Manager, at lkrupski@naquitline.org with any questions on Best and Promising Practices / Learning Community.
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Learning Community Series Practice Brief - Evolving Quitline Practices: Technology-Mediated Services, Youth Cessation and Vaping Cessation
NAQC released the first Learning Committee Series Practice Brief, Evolving Quitline Practices: Technology-Mediated Services, Youth Cessation and Vaping Cessation.
This brief marks the first in a planned series of publications developed through NAQC’s Learning Community project, which focuses on evolving practices and emerging topics in the field of tobacco
cessation quitlines. The Learning Community is a collaborative professional effort which engages quitline service providers, state health departments, researchers, subject-matter experts and community
stakeholders in shared dialogue and development of recommendations that will advance quitline practice.
Learning Community Webinars to Discuss Recommendations on Technology-mediated Services
In 2020/2021, a series of virtual Learning Community meetings were held to advance quitline practice on technology-mediated services and to gather feedback on the topic and recommendations
The Advisory Council serves as the forum for convening the Learning Community, and the quitline community will be invited to submit comments, questions and feedback throughout the process. Please
look for e-mail updates on future meeting dates and discussion topics.
February 19, 2021: Learning Community Meeting on February 19: Technology-Mediated Services
July 23, 2021: Learning Community Meeting on July 23: Technology-Mediated Services
Draft Report with Recommendations
Learning Community Series Draft Report, Recommended Best and Promising Practices on Technology-Mediated Services for Quitlines contains draft recommendations for Quitlines on technology-mediated services including Text, Web and Apps that are effective
for improving reach, engagement, and outcomes. A webinar to gather feedback was held on October 25 at 3 pm ET and recording and
slides are available here.
Learning Community Portal
The Learning Community Portal provides a forum for engaging the quitline
community in the process of knowledge-sharing and learning on new and emerging topics with the goal of improving quitline service and utilization. The web portal houses information about and materials
for meetings, resources, and will provide engagement opportunities through the forums. To learn more about how the portal works, please review the NAQC Learning Community Portal User Guide and a Code of Conduct.
Project on Lung Cancer Screening
NAQC has partnered with MD Anderson on a research study funded by the Patient
Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) called Project CONNECT: Connecting quitline callers with lung cancer screening services. This multi-year project aims to build on work MD Anderson did
with 13 state quitlines to offer a patient decision support tool on lung cancer screening. This new study aims to test and further refine the use of the tool in the quitline setting, evaluate the
reach and impact, and document the resources needed to implement and maintain the tool. A webinar on the project took place on May 6, 2020 and an implementation guide will be released in late 2021/early
2022.
May 6, 2020: Improving Informed Decision-making about Lung Cancer Screening Among Quitline Callers
Orientation/Refresher Sessions
We offer orientation/refresher webinars to ensure that the quitline community is
familiar with the services offered by NAQC and makes the most of them! If you and your team would like to schedule a webinar to learn more about NAQC or focus on a new priority program for your quitline,
please contact us at membership@naquitline.org.
Research and Evaluation
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Please contact Katie Mason, Research and Evaluation Manager, at kmason@naquitline.org with any questions on Research and Evaluation.
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Findings from the 2020 Annual Survey (Webinar PPT/Recording)
Since 2004, NAQC has conducted an annual survey of quitlines in North America. The information collected in the survey advances our understanding of quitline operations and services. The survey
collects information on quitline financing, counseling interventions, medication provision, utilization, and evaluation. Aggregate results are shared with the quitline community and partners and
help achieve NAQC's mission of monitoring overall progress of quitlines and promoting evidence based quitline services across diverse communities in North America.
The results of the
2020 survey can be viewed here and the 2021 survey launched on October 6, 2021 with a training webinar.
Minimal Data Set (MDS) Updates
A number of changes have been made to the MDS in 2021 and they are highlighted
below:
- Optional COVID-19 questions for the MDS. Adding optional COVID-19 pandemic questions to the MDS provides standardized questions that can help the quitline community understand impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on quitline participants’ amount of tobacco use, motivation to quit, and staying quit.
- The time-limited optional intake question for states interested in identifying the number of public housing agency (PHA) residents sunset onDecember 31, 2020.
Technical Assistance on Reducing MDS Intake Questions and Other Research and Evaluation Issues
Staff has developed a process for states to identify intake questions that can be eliminated, thereby reducing the length of intake. A workgroup met twice to discuss the process and strategies
for reducing the length of intake (a helpful guide has been developed and is available here).
Additionally, a dialogue was held in June for states to discuss the usefulness of intake questions about menthol product use. A group of states interested in drafting a question or questions
about disability for use at intake met throughout the year.
Assessing and Responding to the Impact of COVID-19 on Quitline Utilization (Report, Webinar on Increasing Utilization/Promotion)
In calendar year 2020, calls through 1-800-QUIT-NOW decreased by 27% (over 190,000 calls). The decrease in calls mirrored the timeline of the pandemic, with a 6% decrease in the first quarter
of 2020 (January – March), followed by decreases of 39%, 30%, and 21% for quarters two, three and four. Research suggests that the stress and anxiety resulting from the pandemic may be factors in
the increased use of tobacco, alcohol and other substances. NAQC suggests that these factors may have contributed to the decrease in calls to quitlines.
Messaging on the importance of
smoking cessation during the pandemic and the availability of effective cessation services need to be amplified. The COVID-19 pandemic has challenged our progress on smoking cessation in 2020, but
this does not need to be the case in 2021.
Report
Media Advisory
April call update
June call update
Several webinars were held to assist the quitlines
during the pandemic:
February 10, 2021: Quitline Call Volume During the COVID-19 Pandemic
July 15, 2021: Strategies to Increase Reach During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Strategies to Improve Accuracy of Quit Rate Calculations (Brief and Webinar)
Over the past decade, the average
response rate and sample size used by state quitlines to calculate quit rates have decreased, raising concerns about the accuracy of reported quit rates. This webinar highlighted the NAQC standard
for calculating quit rates and presented ideas for increasing sample size and response rates.
As a background document for the webinar, please review the Quit Rate Discussion Paper.
September 22, 2021: Strategies to Improve the Accuracy of Quit Rates
Public Private Partnership / Medicaid
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Please contact Tracey Strader, Senior Program Manager, at ttstrader@naquitline.org with any questions on Public-Private Partnership / Medicaid.
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Brief: Medicaid Reimbursement for Quitline Pharmacy Products
A new cost-sharing brief, Medicaid Reimbursement for Quitline Pharmacy Products,
identifies current processes, barriers, and breakthroughs, and “ideal” processes that may be considered when state quitline funders and service providers seek Medicaid reimbursement for pharmacotherapy.
We hope you will find this cost-sharing brief useful in identifying opportunities within your state tobacco control program and applying some of the lessons learned from the participating states.
The webinar on this topic was held on March 10, 2021 and you can view the recording and slides here.
Orientation, Discussion Groups and Technical Assistance on Public Private Partnerships
PPP Group Meetings generally
occur via Zoom on a monthly basis. While presentations are provided from time to time, the purpose of the PPP Group Discussion is peer learning. States share updates on their work with Medicaid,
State as Employer, Commercial Insurers, Self-insured Employers, or their work in changing eligibility to advance public private partnerships. Orientation slides have been developed for those new
to the group and are available upon request.
Individual technical assistance is available to any state wishing to obtain guidance on their plans or approach. Topics may include environmental
assessment, relationship building, making the business case, or other similar topics. Some states choose to engage on a regular, periodic basis, while others engage on an as needed basis. From time
to time, states may bring other health department staff, or their Medicaid colleagues or others to the TA session. States generally set at least one public private partnership goal for the year.
Top Webpages and Web Features You Should Know About
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Please contact Natalia Gromov, Administrator, at ngromov@naquitline.org with any questions on website or communications.
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Map of State and Provincial Quitlines
To learn about the quitline services in any state or province, visit the Quitline Map and then click on the state or province. The Quitline Map continues
to be the most visited and utilized page on the NAQC website. We have made updates to make it even more useful for marketing your quitline. Below is a reminder of several profile features:
- An open text box was added under each section of the map profile that can be used to share supplemental information with viewers.
- "Enroll in online cessation services ”button was added to simplify the enrollment process in the online services of smokers visiting the map profile.
NAQC makes updates to smoke-free laws and tobacco taxes biannually and posts benchmarking survey data in the summer. If you have any questions or updates, please contact profiles@naquitline.org.
Website Search Feature
The easiest way to find a resource/upcoming webinar/research article on the NAQC website is by using a site search feature located on the top left corner of the NAQC website. Simply type in the keyword into the search field and click on “search”. You will be provided with a list
of all records featuring that keyword on the NAQC website sorted by relevance.
Peer-to-Peer Communications through the ListServ and Membership Directory (members-only)
Have a question for your peers? Post it to the NAQC ListServ to gain feedback
from other quitline professionals. Posting a question is easy. Simply send an email to NAQC@listserv.naquitline.org. You may also access the ListServ
archive to review past questions and answers. Additional information about the ListServ is available here.
Please visit the membership directory page
to access the online directory (members-only).Note: Please make sure to keep your membership information current. You can update your information by signing into your NAQC membership profile. Contact Natalia Gromov, Administrator, (800-398-5489 ext.701 ormembership@naquitline.org)
with any questions or for assistance with making member profile updates.
Thank you again for the important work you do and your support! If you have any questions, please contact us at
naqc@naquitline.orgor 800-398-5489 ext. 707.
We look forward to another year of moving quitlines forward!
Regards,
NAQC Staff
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