Overview of LTPB
Leave The Pack Behind (LTPB) is a comprehensive, age-tailored, tobacco control initiative for young adults on post-secondary campuses.
Taking a comprehensive approach, that addresses protection, prevention and cessation, LTPB uses evidence-based, age-tailored tobacco control strategies to successfully reduce tobacco use among older youth and young adults on post-secondary campuses.
Tobacco control strategies implemented by LTPB include:
- extensive social marketing campaigns that use social media, mass media, and interpersonal communication in print, electronic and face-to-face formats
- brief and intensive smoking cessation counselling services provided by campus health professionals who can currently provide full course treatments of nicotine replacement therapy free of charge
- peer-to-peer programs and services that actively discourage uptake/escalation of tobacco use, support cessation, address social norms and campus policies, and provide general tobacco control education
- frequent communication and consultation with a wide range of Smoke Free Ontario, government, NGO, and industry partners who support the tobacco control goals of Leave The Pack Behind and the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care
Leave The Pack Behind is now established on all 20 universities and all 24 applied arts colleges in Ontario.1 The total potential reach of Leave The Pack Behind is currently just over 599,000 students, representing approximately 155,000 smokers.2
References:
1 In addition to the 24 publicly funded Colleges offering programs in Applied Arts & Technology, there are 3 colleges offering post-secondary programs in Agricultural Technologies and the Michener Institute which offers post-secondary programs for healthcare professionals.
2 Based on a prevalence of 22% for university students and 33% for college students (Tester & Lawrance, 2012).