Bay Clinic honored for tobacco-free efforts

The Coalition for Tobacco-Free Hawaii-East Hawaii awarded Bay Clinic Inc. the third annual Community Excellence award in recognition of World No Tobacco Day.

CTFH-East Hawaii is a coalition of public health partners, educators and community members dedicated to improving the lives of Hawaii Island residents through education, advocacy and training.

This year, CTFH-East Hawaii chose to honor Bay Clinic for its comprehensive tobacco-use policy, which prohibits the use of all tobacco products, including electronic smoking devices on all nine of their campuses.

Sally Ancheta, CTFH-East Hawaii community coalition coordinator, and Lenard Allen, Department of Health, public health educator of East Hawaii, presented awards to Bay Clinic CEO Harold Wallace and patient services manager Meleah Lerma.

“Bay Clinic has been a forerunner in tobacco control policies and practices for the past 10 years,” Ancheta said. “Bay Clinic’s Pahoa Family Health Center was one of the first community health centers to integrate asthma education when patients disclosed tobacco use.

“They also partner with smoking cessation program providers to offer cessation programs to patients and community members at their Pahoa, Keaau and Hilo Family Health Centers.

“They are the leading providers of tobacco treatment with programs at the Hilo, Keaau, Pahao and Naalehu clinics.”

For more information about the Bay Clinic tobacco treatment program, contact Jennifer Griffith at 333-3504 or Ancheta at 936-2686 or email sally@tobaccofreehawaii.org.

The Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii consists of more than 100 member organizations and 2,000 advocates that work to create a healthy Hawaii through comprehensive tobacco prevention and control programs.

For more information, visit www.tobaccofreehawaii.org.