Electronic cigarettes, better known as vapes, were originally marketed as a healthier alternative to tobacco products and inhaling smoke, and even a way to wean off nicotine addiction. However, vaping delivers highly concentrated nicotine that can lead to rapid development of nicotine dependence, and many vapes contain harmful chemicals that put users at risk for cardiac and respiratory problems. Flavored vape cartridges, together with trendy packaging and technology, make them highly attractive to adolescents and young adults that may otherwise never use a nicotine product.
An upcoming Dartmouth Health Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) virtual series will explore the use and appeal of vaping among youth and young adults, and the pharmacology and harms of nicotine and other substances in vapes. “Hooked on a Cloud: Youth Vaping Products, Risks, and Intervention Opportunities ECHO” will examine environmental factors that shape youth/young adult use, including product appeal, marketing and public policies, and will consider opportunities for change. Attendees will be prepared to recognize, intervene and support youth and young adults towards harm reduction or elimination of vaping using evidence-based approaches.
All six sessions in the series are on Wednesdays from 12-1 pm, from September through December. Topics include:
- September 24 – Vaping 101: What vapes are today, what they look like, and what's inside
- October 8 – Vaping 101: Physiology and health effects
- October 22 – Interventions for vaping: Behavioral health strategies and medications
- November 5 – Interventions for vaping: Apps, websites, and other self-guided strategies
- November 19 – Strategies to engage youth and young adults in conversations about vaping
- December 3 – Vaping influences: industry, peers, and policy
Primary care providers and teams, school personnel, and others who work/interact with youth in the community are encouraged to take part in this free educational series. To register, visit bit.ly/47KSSRP.
Project ECHO is a program of the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and the state’s largest private employer, serves patients across northern New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH, as well as across its wide network of hospitals, clinics and care facilities. DHMC is consistently named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, one of only 57 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation, and the only such center in northern New England; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital and multiple locations around the region; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and more than 24 clinics that provide ambulatory and specialty services across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its historical partnership with Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually, and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials recognized across the globe with Geisel and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT. Dartmouth Health and its more than 13,000 employees are deeply committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in our communities, and to providing each of our patients with exceptional, personal care.