For those who have not been to conferences before I should explain that not only do many start early and continue all day but in addition there are often extra sessions organised in the early evening. I am always surprised that so many people are still eager for more. Basel is no exception.
The end-of-day symposium was supposed to discuss the contribution of smoking cessation to tobacco policy but instead asked whether there should be more emphasis on cessation compared to other tobacco control measures. The simple answer is that it rather depends on where you are from. Smoking cessation treatment services are an important element of tobacco control but on their own they will not achieve significant population prevalence changes.
There was some discussion over the relatively high emphasis on price in the tobacco. One speaker suggested that the elements of tobacco control policy are like fingers that make up a fist to fight tobacco. The question is which element is the thumb and which the little finger?
By the end of the session the vote remained confused and split over whether there should be more emphasis on cessation. Delegates were perhaps more interested in the drinks reception that followed...
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