Smoking takes up over 90,000 GP appointments a year in Gateshead, report finds

A shocking council report has revealed that smoking creates over 90,000 GP appointments a year in Gateshead alone.

A report into the council’s smoking strategy has found that year on year, smoking continues to add pressure to GP and NHS services. According to the report, each year smoking in Gateshead causes:

2,707 hospital admissions

94,940 GP appointments

52, 520 GP prescriptions for smoking-related conditions

The report states: “In the North-East, smoking related disease is still estimated to kill 337 people annually, accounts for 1,899 years of life lost and is thought to be responsible for a third of all cancer deaths. For every person lost to smoking, it is estimated that 30 are living with a smoking-related disease. Although rates have fallen, in 2022 11.1% of adults continued to smoke in Gateshead – this works out at around 22,251 people.”

Caroline Cerny, Deputy Chief Executive at Action on Smoking on Health said: “Smoking damages nearly every organ in the body and kills up to two thirds of long-term smokers. These figures highlight the huge toll it takes on services – with thousands of GP appointments, hospital admissions and prescriptions every year. But behind every number is a person, and with the right support, people are far more likely to quit.”

The report also identified disparities in the number of people smoking depending on their socio-economic status, occupation, mental health, and gender.

In Gateshead, 16.7% of those in “routine and manual occupations” smoke, 3.5 times higher than people in professional or managerial work. The prevalence of smoking among people with long-term mental issues is thought to be as high as 41.7% in Gateshead.

The council’s report also states as it does not currently report on whether patients are diagnosed with a mental health problem it cannot estimate if stop smoking services are providing enough support. The report states that it is “unlikely” those with severe mental health issues do get enough support as they have been historically linked to low uptakes on tobacco cessation programmes.

The latest figures in Gateshead, from 2022/23, also show 205 women a year are smokers while pregnant, accounting for 10.9% of mothers. This is lower than the regional rate (12.5%) but higher than the national rate (8.8%).

The council now intends to enhance its quit smoking activity, through a number of proposed measures. These include, ensuring ongoing support of primary care and pharmacies and targeted support in existing mental health and substance abuse facilities.

The council will also seek to encourage people “repeatedly and consistently” to make as many attempts to quit as possible, but encourage at least one attempt per year.