Tobacco Control and Prevention in Grand Forks County

In 2004 CHPPR's staff provided consultation and evaluation services to the Grand Forks Public Health Department (GFPHD) for their tobacco prevention and control activities. CHPPR prepared a report on the state of tobacco use among adults and youth in Grand Forks County using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, the Youth Risk Behavior Survey, and county-wide school policy and program data gathered by the GFPHD. This report provided an up-to-date view of the prevalence of tobacco use and other tobacco-related statistics in the county and provided a planning tool for future tobacco prevention and control activities in Grand Forks County.

The evaluation showed that while current and frequent smoking decreased from 2001 to 2003 in Grand Forks County youth, they were still more likely to be current cigarette smokers than high school youth in the nation. The majority of schools in the county appeared to be using best available tobacco prevention curricula but only 35% provided tobacco prevention curricula to students in every grade.

Among adults in Grand Forks County, there was an increase in cigarette smoking in 2002 compared to 1999 and 1996, but only for those with high school or less education. Additionally, the number of Grand Forks County households in which both children and at least one adult smoker resided increased in 2002 compared to previous years. On the other hand, more adults in 2002 in Grand Forks County reported being employed in a smoke-free workplace.

If you would like to learn more about this program evaluation project, please contact us at (701) 777-4046 or email vogeltan@medicine.nodak.edu