In the Thionville metropolitan area, more and more places are identified as tobacco-free spaces. Photo City of Thionville
November is smoke-free month. However, since 2021, Thionville has been identified as one of the three tobacco-free free cities in the Grand Est alongside Nancy and Joinville (Haute-Marne). What does this imply ? Some answers with Jean-Christophe Hamelin-Boyer, municipal and community elected official in charge of health issues.
What does it mean to be a tobacco-free city?
Jean-Christophe Hamelin-Boyer: “It’s not a smoke-free city. It’s just a matter of denormalizing tobacco use in certain places. »
How do we become a pilot city on this theme?
“We were offered and I immediately thought it was going to be complicated. At the start, we were walking on eggshells and we had a lot of reactions and some outcry from smokers who thought we were going to ban them from everything. This is not the case and with hindsight we see that people took ownership of the system. It becomes obvious to them not to smoke in front of school entrances, for example. We had very rapid public support for the actions implemented, which allows us to consider other approaches. We will stay a little ahead of what is going to happen everywhere. »
Exactly, what actions are already installed?
“On the first date of the 2021 school year, we demarcated designated non-smoking areas with green bands on the sidewalk rights-of-way facing the schools. The decision quickly became logical to the point that at a given moment, the municipal police – trained to be educational to the general public – no longer needed to come by, the mothers took over to enforce Rule. The same year, we limited smoking areas within City buildings and the urban community. It was less obvious because people were at their workplace and they had gotten into the habit of going out and smoking right in front of the establishment while chatting. Creating smoke-free spaces changes habits. But each time it is a matter of finding a place where they can continue to smoke without disturbing them. We determine it with them. We are not hunting down smokers but this action aims to open their eyes to the fact that there are places where it is not normal to smoke. We have also banned smoking in the parks by putting ashtrays at the entrances accompanied by an information leaflet. It’s not 100% respected yet but it’s not too bad. »
Should we go even further?
“In 2024, we plan to demarcate tobacco-free zones in front of nurseries. This should have been done at the same time as the schools and we will try to make up for this oversight. Then there will be middle and high schools because young people are the tobacco industry’s primary targets. Interventions are already organized in schools to teach them to say “no” to the first use of tobacco, but we must go further. We have an entry point with the health and social BTS of Rosa Parks high school. Students work on a tutored project concerning the fight against smoking. Their objective ? Achieve a tobacco-free high school. We will let them set up their operations. Also note that the municipal youth council will offer us a 2023/2024 action plan on this theme.
The latest project targets Bel Air Hospital. Regularly, we see a crowd of smokers – professionals in white coats and patients – smoking in front of the entrance. We would like to work with the hospital on this problem. We have been talking about it for a good year but for the moment, it remains difficult in terms of contacts. We feel reluctance, we beat around the bush… Health professionals and patients, the populations are different and we must know how to understand them, find the right common thread to raise awareness among them. We also keep in mind that this is a sector with issues that appear to be priorities (staff tension for example). »
Jean-Christophe Hamelin-Boyer. Photo City of Thionville
How do we raise awareness among the general public?
“With prevention interventions in schools but also by offering support to stop smoking to people who wish. This is what we do with our employees through an initial interview to gauge their motivation, physical activity and sophrology workshops and by putting them in contact with addiction centers. We realize that 80% of smokers want to quit and if we give them the pole, they will take it. With us, around fifteen agents are affected by this support, ten have already stopped their tobacco consumption. We also provide training to healthcare professionals (general practitioner, nurse, midwife, pediatrician, etc.) in order to provide them with tools and practical information to help their patients quit smoking. »
Is smoking more present in Thionville than elsewhere, with access facilitated by the proximity of Luxembourg?
“It’s certain that here we don’t feel the impact of the expensive package so we certainly have a little more difficulty than elsewhere. A study carried out by Audirep on behalf of Grand Est Sans Tabac in 2020 estimated the number of smokers in Thionville at 29%, which is far too many. Afterwards it is difficult to know if it is linked to social environments or to proximity to Luxembourg. The fact remains that it is an observation: we are very impacted by everything that involves tobacco consumption. »
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