FREE SMOKING CESSATION CLASSES AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC

The next series of the Cooper/Clayton Method smoking cessation classes will begin on Wednesday, January 6, in the conference facilities of Dearborn County Hospital.  Classes are scheduled on Wednesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. for 13 weeks and are open to the public and free of charge.

Citizens Against Substance Abuse (CASA) is presenting the Cooper/Clayton classes with funding provided by the Dearborn County Hospital Auxiliary.  Leading the group will be Tony Escamilla, R.C.P., a Respiratory Care Practitioner who is himself a graduate of the Cooper/Clayton Method.

The program is named after Thomas Cooper, D.D.S., and Richard Clayton, Ph.D., who founded the program in 1985.  Dr. Cooper, a retired professor of dentistry from the University of Kentucky, quit smoking after 36 years of cigarette use by utilizing the program they had devised together.  Dr. Clayton is a retired professor of sociology from the University of Kentucky and is also Chairman of the Tobacco Etiology Research Network, a group of scientists studying tobacco use and nicotine dependence.

Their method of quitting was patented in 1991.  It is not “cold turkey” but instead offers participants a choice of programs using nicotine gum, patches or other aids, along with group support, behavior modification and decreasing use of tobacco.  Although the classes are free of charge, smoking cessation products are not provided for the participants.  Some insurance plans may cover the cost of smoking cessation products.

For more information or to register, please call Mr. Escamilla at (812) 926-1582.  Participants may register in advance or on the first night of class.