The Son La Provincial Center for Disease Control exchanged and learned from Cao Bang province's experience in tobacco control activities.

On December 11th, a delegation from the Son La Provincial Center for Disease Control, led by Ms. Dang Thi Anh Duyen, Deputy Director of the Center, visited the Cao Bang Provincial Center for Disease Control to observe, exchange ideas, and learn from their experiences in tobacco control activities. Receiving and working with the delegation were Ms. Be Thi Bach, Director of the Cao Bang Provincial Center for Disease Control, and representatives from relevant departments and divisions of the Center.

Comrade Be Thi Bach, Director of the Cao Bang Provincial Center for Disease Control, delivered a speech at the working session.

Speaking at the meeting, Ms. Be Thi Bach, Director of the Cao Bang Center for Disease Control, expressed her pleasure in welcoming the delegation from Son La province to exchange and learn from their experiences. She emphasized that in recent years, Cao Bang has always focused on implementing comprehensive activities to prevent and control the harmful effects of tobacco, aiming to create a smoke-free working environment, healthcare facilities, and communities. This is an important issue that the provincial health sector has paid close attention to, contributing to protecting public health and effectively implementing the National Strategy on Tobacco Control.

At the meeting, representatives from the Department of Non-Communicable Disease Prevention and Control, Cao Bang Provincial Center for Disease Control, presented an overview of the results of tobacco harm prevention and control activities in the province over the past period. From 2024 to 2025, the Cao Bang Provincial Center for Disease Control organized 32 direct communication sessions on tobacco harm prevention and control at educational institutions with 11,250 teachers and students participating; trained over 200 teachers on skills in integrating tobacco harm prevention and control content into extracurricular activities. They also organized over 20 training courses for various target groups, including : members of the Women's Union, police officers, members of the Farmers' Association, and village health workers … to enhance understanding of the harmful effects of tobacco and skills in disseminating and enforcing the Law on Tobacco Harm Prevention and Control at the grassroots level.

In addition, the organization intensified communication activities through mass media, with 40 TV spots, 2 documentaries, and more than 40 thematic news articles; at the same time, it distributed thousands of products carrying communication messages such as banners, spiral calendars, raincoats, etc., to agencies, schools, and communities, contributing to spreading the message about preventing and combating the harmful effects of tobacco and raising awareness among the people.

The delegation from the Son La Provincial Center for Disease Control visited the testing system at the Cao Bang Center for Disease Control.

In 2024 , the province also conducted an investigation and assessment of the current state of tobacco use in the area . The investigation showed that the percentage of smokers decreased to 20.3%, lower than in previous years and the national average. The network of collaborators continued to be strengthened; currently, there are 50 collaborators in the province supporting the effective implementation of tobacco harm prevention and control activities at the grassroots level.

During the working session, Ms. Dang Thi Anh Duyen, Deputy Director of the Son La Center for Disease Control, highly appreciated the results, models, and approaches of the province in the work of preventing and controlling the harmful effects of tobacco. She stated that the practical experiences shared from Cao Bang will be important lessons to help Son La improve the effectiveness of the program in the future, especially in building smoke-free environments at the grassroots level.

The delegation from the Son La Provincial Center for Disease Control visited and worked at the Dam Thuy Commune Health Station.

In the afternoon of the same day, the delegation visited and worked at the Dam Thuy Commune Health Station. There, the leaders and staff of the Health Station reported on the implementation of activities to prevent and control the harmful effects of tobacco at the unit, emphasizing the creation of a smoke-free environment in the health facility, organizing awareness campaigns for people coming for medical examinations and treatment, and integrating tobacco harm prevention content into other health programs. The representatives of the Son La delegation highly appreciated the proactive approach of the Dam Thuy Commune Health Station and considered this a suitable model for implementation at the commune level in their locality.

This is an opportunity for the two units to strengthen professional exchanges, share practical experiences and effective methods to further improve the quality of tobacco harm prevention and control work in the locality in the future.

Quoc Cuong

Source: https://soyte.caobang.gov.vn/tin-tuc-66446/trung-tam-kiem-soat-benh-tat-tinh-son-la-trao-doi-hoc-tap-kinh-nghiem-hoat-dong-phong-chong-tac--1034431