We’re thrilled to spotlight Nicole Aune, MPH, Section Supervisor and Quit Now Montana (QNM). This initiative celebrates inspiring individuals, creative projects, and meaningful contributions shaping the quitline community

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Nicole Aune, MPH , has dedicated nearly nine years to the Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program, serving for over a year as Section Supervisor. She is inspired by the tremendous progress the commercial tobacco prevention and control community has made over the last twenty years. Positive change might be slow, but it is very possible, and we are evidence of that. Nicole is hopeful for our future!

For the first time in nearly decade, Quit Now Montana (QNM) is seeing a rise in both provider referrals and overall participation. Provider referrals had been declining since 2017, prompting the Montana Tobacco Use Prevention Program (MTUPP) to invest in new, innovative strategies to boost provider engagement.

In October of 2023, MTUPP signed on to National Jewish Health’s (NJH) Health Systems Change (HSC) Program. NJH’s HSC Program then partnered with MTUPP to launch a new approach focused on Tobacco Education Specialists (TES) in 10 counties and Tribal communities in Montana. The goal of the HSC Program is to increase referrals to QNM and equip local TES with the tools and support needed to make provider outreach easier and more productive. Montana’s HSC Program launched this new approach with TESs on July 1, 2024. Key HSC program activities included one-on-one meetings and a resource-sharing meeting with each TES in the focused communities, and trainings on HSC and QNM, which were available to all TESs. In addition to providing support to the TESs, the HSC team aligned outreach and engagement strategies with a variety of health care facilities throughout Montana. A total of 106 providers and TESs attended these technical assistance events during the program year. TES participants demonstrated enthusiasm from the outset, showing a strong interest in strengthening their provider partnerships. Data from pre- and post-evaluations showed an increase in both knowledge and confidence among the TES participants. Provider referrals to QNM increased 43% (184 in SFY 2024 to 264 in SFY 2025), contributing to an 8% increase in overall QNM intakes. The HSC team's support of two key facilities largely drove the increase: a behavioral health facility that integrated e-referral capabilities and a Tribal clinic that received QNM 101 training. Due to the success of this new approach, Montana is expanding the program to 17 additional communities in SFY 2026.