OHA recognized five hospitals and clinic partners at our recent Connect 23 annual conference for achieving notable benchmarks in reducing tobacco use in Oklahoma. The OHA’s Clinical Tobacco Treatment Initiative has partnered with hospitals and clinics to create sustainable tobacco treatment systems change to support patient tobacco cessation. Through this initiative, our partners have adopted and implemented best practices in tobacco-free environmental policy, clinical tobacco treatment workflow for patients, and a mechanism to proactively refer patients to the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline (OTH) for coaching support and nicotine replacement therapy. OHA recognized these hospital leaders who have fully embraced this initiative and achieved notable benchmarks in proactive referrals to the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline: Helpline Referrals 50-250 Fairview Regional Medical Center – 60 referrals INTEGRIS Cancer Institute – 100 referrals Helpline Referrals 251-500 INTEGRIS Employee Wellness – 450 referrals Helpline Referrals 500-1500 DRH Health, Duncan – 950 referrals McAlester Regional Health Center - 1200 referrals Through effective, healthcare provider-driven tobacco treatment services, OHA partner hospitals and clinics have referred 60,000 patients to the OTH, resulting in an estimated 28,672 years of life saved and $14.5 million in reduced healthcare costs. The Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) supports OHA’s Clinical Tobacco Treatment Initiative and the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline. For more information on how OHA can help your health system with tobacco treatment efforts, click here. For information on the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline, click here. (Eric Finley)