Four-week smoking quitters

Number of smokers who quit at four-week follow-up with the NHS smoking cessation services (performance against plan)

Rationale

Smoking is the single greatest cause of preventable illness and premature death in the UK. Seven out of ten adult smokers say they would like to give up, but due to the addictive nature of nicotine, most smokers find it hard to quit. For smokers who give up, the chances of getting a serious or fatal disease are greatly reduced. This indicator is therefore crucial to securing improvements in public health. The Priorities and Planning Framework for the NHS for 2003-2006 sets a target of 800,000 four-week smoking quitters and makes clear the role of the services in contributing to reducing cancer mortality and in tackling health inequalities, through delivery of this target.

Thresholds

Legend
Achieved		80% or more
Underachieved	-	Greater than or equal to 55% and less than 80%
Significantly underachieved	x	Less than 55%