2015- 2016

ANNUAL REPORT

LEADING THE WAY FOR

TOBACCO-FREE ENVIRONMENTS

ACROSS MAINE

389 Congress Street, Portland, Maine 04101 | 207-874-8774 | www.BreatheEasyMaine.org

ABOUT US

The Breathe Easy Coalition of Maine is a statewide umbrella organization of the Smoke-Free

Housing Coalition of Maine, Maine Tobacco-Free Hospital Network, Maine Tobacco-Free College

Network and Maine Tobacco-Free Behavioral Health Network. BEC works to reduce exposure to

secondhand smoke through strong voluntary policies that lead to reduced tobacco use and

increased tobacco-free living throughout Maine. The BEC work is accomplished by providing

resources and technical assistance to aid policy change in these four target environments.

The efforts of the Breathe Easy Coalition are made possible through funding and support from

the Partnership for a Tobacco-Free Maine at the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention,

Department of Health and Human Services. Additional support for the work of BEC is made

possible through a grant from the Maine Cancer Foundation. The Breathe Easy Coalition is housed

in the City of Portland’s Public Health Division.

WELCOME

Over the past year, The Breathe Easy Coalition of Maine (BEC) has seen exciting growth, new

partnerships, policy change and successfully implemented objectives by staff and partner

agencies all helping make Maine a healthier state in which to live, work and play.

Efforts to reduce involuntary exposure to secondhand smoke could not have been achieved

without the support and participation of coalition members and partners. Over the past year

among housing, hospitals, post-secondary education, behavioral healthcare and public health

professionals, BEC has interacted with hundreds of partners across the state, all of whom share

a goal of creating healthier environments free from tobacco smoke.

As we work to achieve continued success, it is critical to build and maintain these collaborations.

We welcome new and continued connections with you and your organization to attend coalition

meetings, webinars, trainings, receive electronic newsletters, participate in programs, educate

others on the dangers of secondhand and thirdhand smoke and partner to create and sustain

policy change.

This report will provide additional information about specific initiatives, project outcomes and

message reach for 2015-2016. If you would like to learn more about the coalition please contact

us or visit www.BreatheEasyMaine.org.

Sarah Mayberry

Program Coordinator

30 email newsletters sent

to 1,409 recipients

4 social

media

outlets

25,834 hits on 4 websites

averaging 2,153 hits per month

326 new Smoke-Free Home Pledges

Total pledges since 2008 5,066

Gold

Sta

r Sta

ndard

s

of

Excellence

Hospitals

85% participation rate

Colleges

41% participation rate

8 webinars with 108

participants and

169 views of recordings

20 presentations at 18

organizations in Maine and

2 National organizations-

National Cancer Institute

American Public Health Association

Exhibited at 5 statewide

Annual Conferences

192 requests for

technical assistance across

all initiative areas.

Resulting in policy change,

implementation and enforcement.

MAINE TOBACCO-FREE HOSPITAL NETWORK

Hospitals are recognized as healthcare leaders in the community. Implementing tobacco-free campus

policies support a hospital’s existing mission and vision to provide a safe, healthy environment.

POLICY SUCCESSES 95% of all hospitals in Maine have a 100% tobacco-free campus policy.

Maine’s tobacco-free hospitals have a total of 3,699 beds.

33 of 39 hospitals were recognized in the 2015 program:

26 Gold Level

2 Silver Level

5 Bronze Level

Individual Gold Star Champions:

Donald Watson, Maine Medical Center

Todd Miner, Mount Desert Island Hospital

GOLD STAR STANDARDS

OF EXCELLENCE

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE 16 requests for technical assistance from hospital representatives for tobacco-

free hospital policy adoption, implementation or enforcement assistance.

1 webinar, 12 participants and 22 views online- highlighting the case for

creating tobacco-free environments and rationale for the ten evidence-based

Gold Star Standards of Excellence.

NEWSLETTERS, WEBSITE

AND RESOURCES

6 newsletters distributed to 211 contacts.

1,760 visits to www.MaineTobaccoFreeHospitals.org website.

MTFHN Gold Star Standards of Excellence Application and Guidance Document

revised and distributed.

Thirdhand smoke factsheet revised, highlighting current research on the topic.

PRESENTATIONS

AND EXHIBITS

Presented at MaineGeneral Medical Center on the importance of

tobacco-free policies for their worksite wellness staff.

Exhibited at Maine Quality Counts Annual Conference.

www.MaineTobaccoFreeHospitals.org

POLICY SUCCESSES

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

NEWSLETTERS, WEBSITE

AND RESOURCES

PRESENTATIONS Presented at Saint Joseph’s College on tobacco-free policies and

dangers of secondhand smoke exposure.

Presented at York County Community College’s kickoff event for the

new 100% tobacco-free policy.

Presented at the University of New England on

health concerns of secondhand and thirdhand smoke.

www.MaineTobaccoFreeCollegeNetwork.org

Institutions of higher education can create a healthier environment to learn, live, work and play by adopting

tobacco-free campus policies that reduce exposure to secondhand smoke and support tobacco free lifestyles.

MAINE TOBACCO-FREE COLLEGE NETWORK

78% of all colleges/universities in Maine have a 100% smoke and tobacco-free

campus policy.

61,647 students are enrolled at Maine’s tobacco-free colleges/universities.

2 campuses announced and implemented 100% smoke and tobacco-free policies:

York County Community College and Southern Maine Community College

GOLD STAR STANDARDS

OF EXCELLENCE

11 of 27 colleges/universities were recognized in the 2016 program:

10 Gold Level

1 Silver Level

Individual Gold Star Champions:

Malinda Scannell, University of Southern Maine

Deidre Thompson, York County Community College

13 requests for technical assistance from college/university representatives for

tobacco-free campus policy adoption, implementation or enforcement assistance.

1 webinar, 18 participants and 35 views online– presenting steps for policy

change and highlighting tobacco-free campus success stories from the University

of Southern Maine and the University of New England.

6 newsletters distributed to 208 contacts.

1,128 visits to www.MaineTobaccoFreeCollegeNetwork.org website.

Smoke & Tobacco-Free Campus Toolkit revised and mailed to 97 contacts.

MTFCN infographic developed and distributed.

Smoke & Tobacco-Free Campus Case Study Portfolio created from interviews

conducted at 4 campuses across Maine.

MAINE TOBACCO-FREE BEHAVIORAL HEALTH NETWORK

Behavioral health facilities can support good health and wellness for their consumers, staff and

visitors by reducing exposure to secondhand smoke and encouraging tobacco-free lifestyles through

the adoption of strong tobacco-free policies.

The pledge is a demonstration of your commitment to keeping your family

and home healthier by removing secondhand smoke.

SMOKE-FREE HOME PLEDGE

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

PRESENTATIONS

AND EXHIBITS

NEWSLETTERS

16 requests for technical assistance from behavioral health facilities for tobacco-

free policy adoption, implementation or enforcement assistance.

1 webinar, 31 participants and 21 views online– supporting behavioral health

facilities to create strong tobacco-free policies by explaining the case for

addressing tobacco in behavioral health settings and resources available to help

with policy change.

Presented at Partnership for a Tobacco-Free Maine/Center for Tobacco Independence-

Tobacco Treatment Conference on the role of tobacco-free policies in encouraging

tobacco quit attempts.

Presented at Maine Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Prevention Day on

lessons learned from creating tobacco-free area policies and opportunities for

collaboration when addressing tobacco and marijuana.

Presented an overview on tobacco-free environments at the Co-Occurring Collaborative

Service Maine- Integrating Tobacco Treatment in Behavioral Health Settings conference.

Exhibited at Maine Quality Counts Annual Conference.

5 newsletters distributed to 304 contacts.

www.SmokeFreeForMe.org/Pledge

326 new pledges and 5,066 total pledges since 2008. NUMBERS

Partnership with Maine Families Programs in Franklin County, Washington County and

Kennebec/Somerset Counties and MaineHealth Center for Tobacco Independence Clinical

Outreach Program.

The Facebook campaign reached 15,253 people in February 2016.

PROMOTION

www.BreatheEasyMaine.org/BehavorialHealth

RECOGNITON Smoke-free Home Pledge program featured in HealthyPeople 2020: Who's Leading the

Leading Health Indicators? series in December 2015.

SMOKE-FREE HOUSING COALITION OF MAINE

Creating smoke-free environments in multi-unit housing creates a safer, healthier environment for

residents and reduces property damage and turnover costs for property owners and managers.

POLICY SUCCESSES

MATERIALS REQUESTS

TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE

PRESENTATIONS

AND EXHIBITS

Presented at the National Cancer Institute’s State & Community Tobacco Control

Research Initiative on efforts addressing smoke-free policies in public housing

authorities.

Presented at American Public Health Association Annual Conference on smoke-free

housing efforts in Maine.

Presented at a Southern Maine Landlord Association monthly meeting, Lewiston/

Auburn Lead Paint Prevention Program and City of Portland Housing Safety Office

on smoke-free policies and resources available to property owners/managers.

Exhibited at Maine Real Estate Managers Association Annual Meeting, Maine Indoor

Air Quality Conference and Maine Affordable Housing Coalition Annual Conference.

More than 30% of listings on MaineHousingSearch.org are designated as smoke-

free.

The US Department of Housing & Urban Development has proposed rules to make

all public housing smoke-free. Maine is the only state in the country where all

public housing authorities have already adopted smoke-free policies.

19 requests for technical assistance from property owners/managers and tenants

for smoke-free policy adoption, implementation or enforcement assistance.

1 webinar offered 3 times, 30 total participants and 15 views online on the

case for smoke-free housing and tips to implement policy change. Multiple

presentation times were offered to accommodate varying schedules for

property owners and managers.

61 requests for decals, keychains and signage for 224 buildings with 2,269 units

throughout Maine.

NEWSLETTERS, WEBSITE

AND RESOURCES

4 newsletters distributed to 442 contacts.

8,828 visits to www.SmokeFreeForMe.org website.

Smoke-free housing postcard was mailed to

more than 12,000 property owners and

managers promoting the case for smoke-free

housing and webinar information. www.SmokeFreeForMe.org

AWARDS Secretary’s Award for Healthy Homes from U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development-

recognizing the ongoing smoke-free housing efforts in Maine.

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE AND STAFF

Lance Boucher

American Lung Association of the Northeast

Linda Christie

Access Health

Dee Kerry deHaas

American Academy of Pediatrics, Maine Chapter

Kristen Dow

City of Portland Public Health

Robin Mayo

Piscataquis Public Health Council

Barbara Perry

MaineHealth Center for Tobacco Independence

Tina Pettingill

Consultant

Thank you to former Executive Committee members who

spent part of this past year with us:

Devin Rowe

Bethany Sanborn

Emma Vaillancourt

389 Congress Street, Portland, Maine 04101 | 207-874-8774 | www.BreatheEasyMaine.org

Sarah Mayberry

Program Coordinator

Meg Nadeau

Community Health Promotion Specialist

Fran Thompson

Community Health Promotion Specialist