The 13th World Conference on Tobacco OR Health

Objective: The primary objective of the 2004-2005 campaign was to reduce the number of children exposed to second-hand smoke in the home and car. The secondary objective was to increase the awareness of the dangers of second-hand smoke around children and the illnesses associated such as pneumonia, cancer and others.

Methods: The campaign was targeted at parents 20-54 with children living in the home. Parents either had to be a smoker or a non-smoker living with a smoker. The campaign consisted of two television advertisements, two radio advertisements, a new 36-page comprehensive guide for parents, an information piece sent to parents in a targeted mailout to over one million homes and a web component. Images and messages remained consistent in all materials which allowed for maximum penetration.

Results: Unaided recall of the second-hand smoke advertisements have reached an impressive 90 per cent of the target audience. In terms of impact, the evaluation survey of the campaign indicates that 25 per cent of the target audience did something as a result of seeing the ads with another 21 per cent saying they plan to do something. The main action cited was not smoking in the house. Based on the results of the campaign, new research was commissioned to explore why parents continue to smoke and expose children to second-hand smoke. The qualitative study (in-depth personal interviews with parents) provided key findings (behaviours, misunderstandings, etc) that have formed the basis for the 2005-2006 second-hand smoke home and car campaign.