Housing evidence / case study · working draft
Smoking Treatment for Ontario Patients (STOP)
Ontario evaluated how community health centres and addiction agencies put free nicotine replacement and counselling into routine care.
01 / THE APPROACH
What was tried
The STOP programme supplied free nicotine replacement and counselling through existing community health centres and addiction agencies. Providers could offer individual sessions, a group workshop, or both, backed by practitioner training.
The Ontario Tobacco Research Unit evaluated implementation using programme records, organisational surveys and case studies. Five community health centres and three addiction agencies were selected for detailed work, including interviews with staff, managers and patients, and patient follow-up surveys.
02 / THE FINDINGS
What was learned
The March 2014 evaluation found that free treatment removed an important access barrier. Training and management support helped organisations develop cessation work.
Delivery varied between sites. Staff time, paperwork and tracking nicotine supplies created difficulties; counselling was inconsistent at some addiction agencies. Patient follow-up found variable self-reported quitting, rather than one uniform programme result.
03 / TRANSFER TO WALES
What Wales could learn
Putting treatment into familiar services required free supplies, trained practitioners, management support and workable administration. The evaluation explains practical barriers alongside the benefits of access.
Sources & review
Ontario Tobacco Research Unit, Evaluation of the STOP Program with Community Health Centres and Addiction Agencies, Evaluation News, March 2014, pp. 1–5. Public report checked 23 October 2026. Methods, sampled sites, implementation findings and ongoing addiction-agency evaluation distinguished from completed CHC evaluation. This replaces the previous provider-overview-only evidence basis; no single quit rate or modern province-wide effect is asserted.
