Taylorville Memorial Hospital has won an award for vaping prevention. TMH won the first-ever Community Project Award from the Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network for a vaping prevention and cessation program at Taylorville Junior High School.
All 6th, 7th, and 8th-grade students at TJHS attended the four-session event of the “Catch My Breath” vaping prevention program that started in December of 2021. When it was complete, nearly 500 students went through it, learning about the harmful effects of e-cigarette use as well as strategies to stand up to peer pressure. Students who wished to quit vaping were given the resources to do so.
The Community Project Award recognizes hospitals that implement projects to strengthen and improve the well-being of their communities. This is the first year for the award, and it was presented on November 10th. Darin Buttz, TMH Director of Community Health said that he is proud of the work done to reduce vaping among young people and lung health is a top community health priority.
More than 92% of students who completed the “Catch My Breath” program said in a survey that they were less likely to vape as a result of what they learned. '
