Salem, Mass. (November 18, 2009) – North Shore Medical Center (NSMC) is helping its community call it quits during the 2009 Great American Smokeout. Smoking cessation specialists will be on hand at both NSMC Salem Hospital and NSMC Union Hospital in Lynn this Thursday from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. offering complementary therapies, such as acupuncture, Reiki and hypnotherapy, and providing discounts on NSMC’s highly successful Quit and Quit for Good program.

The Great American Smokeout takes place Thursday, November 19, 2009. Smoking cessation counselors will also be set up at each location, taking questions from patients, visitors and staff at NSMC.

NSMC is a tobacco-free environment. The use of cigarettes and other tobacco products is not allowed anywhere on the property, inside or out. Providing an environment committed to wellness and prevention sends a clear message about NSMC’s support of a healthy lifestyle.

About the Smokeout

Are you thinking about quitting smoking but not sure you're ready to take the plunge? Maybe the Great American Smokeout is for you. It's an opportunity to join with literally millions of other smokers in saying "no thanks" to cigarettes for 24 hours.

The Great American Smokeout traditionally takes place on the third Thursday in November. The concept dates from the early '70s when Lynn Smith, publisher of the Monticello Times of Minnesota, announced the first observance and called it "D Day." The idea caught on in state after state until in 1977, it went nationwide under the sponsorship of the American Cancer Society. In the past, as many as one-third of the nation's 46 million smokers have taken the day off from smoking.

The rules are simple: You quit smoking for the 24 hours of the Smokeout. The wonderful thing is that you won't be alone; you can swap advice, jokes and groans with the other "quitters," nonsmokers and the American Cancer Society volunteers who will be cheering you on. Even if you don't go on to quit permanently, you will learn that you can quit for a day and that many others around you are taking the step, too.