This October 2018, EMJ Supports…

Written by Kim Cordell  |  Product Development Administrator, European Medical Journal  |  @EMJ_Kim

This October, EMJ has proudly showcased its support for Stoptober and World Psoriasis Day.

In the calendar for over a decade, World Psoriasis Day was held on 29^th October to raise awareness for those living with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Organised by the International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA), World Psoriasis Day not only acted as an opportunity to shine light on this condition and the 125 million people affected around the world,¹ it also offered a chance to dispel common myths surrounding the condition and provided a platform for those affected to have their voice heard.

For the willpower to quit smoking, Stoptober was the campaign for you. Running throughout October as an annual campaign by Public Health England, Stoptober has encouraged >1 million quit attempts to date, and is ‘the biggest mass quit attempt in the country’.² With quitting for good five-times more likely for those who give up smoking for 28 days,² stopping smoking this October was the perfect opportunity to ditch the cigarettes and kick-start improvements in public health. By increasing motivation to quit, the Stoptober campaign was on hand to deliver free support to those on their quitting journey, including daily emails, encouragement from the Stoptober online community on Facebook, and expert advice from local stop smoking services to help trigger significant numbers of quitting attempts.

References:

1. International Federation of Psoriasis Associations (IFPA). World Psoriasis Day. Available at: https://ifpa-pso.com/our-actions/world-psoriasis-day/. Last accessed: 17 October 2017.
2. Public Health England. Stoptober. Available at: https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/campaigns/6-stoptober/overview. Last accessed: 17 October 2018.