It’s been a busy past few days since I last posted and I’ve gone from being in Sydney for two days, to Wollongong and I’m now in Canberra for the next couple of days. My time here is rapidly coming to an end and I was just reflecting last night how much I’ve learnt while I’ve been here – not only about issues relating to alcohol and tobacco, but about the importance of displaying good communication skills, organisational skills (although you should see my suitcase by now!) and the willingness to be flexible to arrangements that are made whilst I’ve been over here. Luckily I had been told whilst I was arranging my itinerary, to leave some free time in the diary in case new contacts were made whilst I was here and that certainly has happened. It also takes independence to travel around a different country and meet different people from all walks of life - I certainly feel more confident in my ability in building relationships with people in a short space of time and will take this back to my work in Gwynedd. I hope that I have made contacts here for life, who I can turn to for information and vice versa on certain health related matters.
On Monday, I had arranged to meet with Dr Tony Jewell, former Chief Medical Officer (CMO) for Wales. Tony and his wife Jane, live in Australia for certain parts of the year and I caught the ferry over to the district where he lives (where incidentally the smoking rates are very very low, around 5%). We discussed his time as CMO in Wales, where he was instrumental in establishing Public Health Wales (PHW), forming a new organisation that would encompass public health matters in Wales (health protection, health promotion and health care quality). I was working for PHW when Tony was appointed and as a strong advocate for public health, he was the driver behind many strategic documents, such as Our Healthy Future (which was a mini Bible to us) and Fairer Outcomes for All, which are still relevant today. It was therefore an honour to discuss public health matters with Tony and we discussed the similarities and differences between Australia and Wales in terms of alcohol and tobacco issues. As I’ve stated in previous posts, Australia has used legislation to great effect in the area of tobacco control and heavily promotes smoke free spaces – to the extent where it is now the norm to have spaces free of smoke. This is slowly starting to happen in the UK, but there is a long way to go in order to make it a norm. Mosman Council have now implemented smoke free zones in all public places in Mosman (apart from on the street), the first of its kind to do so in and around Sydney. Australia has made tobacco control a priority and with everything that they’ve done regarding legislation and social marketing campaigns, they are certainly seeing the results in terms of smoking rates decreasing.
On the way to meet the bus back to Sydney, Tony took me to see a sculpture on the pavement close by to where he lives. As you can see from the picture, it is a sculpture to celebrate the association between two ancient cultures – the Celts and Aborigines. Tony didn’t know what the association was with Mosman (the area where he lives), but it was nice to see a reference to Wales on a sculpture in the suburbs of Sydney! I would like to thank Tony and his wife for their time in meeting with me, it was certainly a pleasure.
On Tuesday morning, I travelled to a suburb in Northern Sydney (Lane Cove), to meet with Victoria Parr. Victoria is now the Managing Director of the Sydney branch of Latitude Insights, but previously to that, she worked for GFK Blue Moon, which was the company involved in researching and designing the plain packaging for the Government. Victoria was the driving force behind this research and has a number of years experience in researching health related matters.
Australia starting displaying health warnings on their cigarette packets in 2006 and it can be seen from graphs, that there was a definite decline in tobacco rates following this development. However, these health warnings (and small pictures) were only displayed on the lids and on the back of the packet – the brand colours were still displayed as was the brand itself. In 2010, the Australian Government decided to implement plain packaging (see photos below), complete with written health warnings, as well as graphic pictures. The brand colours were also replaced with a non descript green colour, so that individuals didn’t make an association between colour and brand. Plain packaging was therefore targeted initially towards the younger population, so that they didn’t start to make an association between brand and colour.
What I hadn’t realised before talking with Victoria, was the background marketing research that had gone into the design of the plain packaging initiative. This involved several studies and different types of methodology and engaging with people who smoked, in order to see what would be most visually effective on cigarette packets. This involved discussing font, font size, the percentage of coverage on the packet which would be health warnings, etc etc. This took several months and several prototypes to finally come up with the cigarette packets that are now on sale. I’m sure you agree that the colour isn’t very appealing, neither are the graphics displayed on the packets. The packs are also designed so that individuals are ashamed to bring them out in public and keep them hidden in their bags instead of leaving them on tables, with the aim of reducing the amount of time people take the packet out of their bag. For more information about the marketing research process surrounding the plain packaging, click on the below. You can then see how much work went into the whole process!
Again, I wish to thank Victoria for meeting with me on such short notice and for discuss the process through with me. Here is Victoria and I:
I then travelled from Sydney to Wollongong, which also has Welsh connections. There, I met with Tanya Buchanan, Manager of Community Cultural and Economic Development for Wollongong City Council. Tanya is the former Chief Executive Officer for ASH Wales and worked in Wales for around 6 years, so has an in depth knowledge of tobacco related issues in Wales. It was great to meet with Tanya and we discussed what they are doing as a city council to promote smoke free areas. Last November, they launched their Smoke Free Mall campaign in Wollongong (the mall is an inside and outside area), where they encourage people not to smoke in this area. This was after a process of public engagement, where they initially researched into whether the public would be happy making the mall smoke free. This information then informs the Council’s elected members, who then make a decision as to whether to move forward on the matter or not. The Police are involved in enforcement of this policy, as they are with many smoke free legislation (such as smoke free cars). Smoke free playgrounds, bus shelters and sport fields are also other smoke free areas around Wollongong. They are now in the consultation process as to another public site within Wollongong which they hope to make smoke free.
I was due to spend a longer period of time at Wollongong City Council, but due to time restrictions with public transport (only one bus going to Canberra from Wollongong daily), I had to cut my visit short there, which was a shame. I really enjoyed meeting Tanya, because as well as talking about tobacco related issued, we also discussed the importance of planning and engagement when trying to implement a public health initiative. Here is Tanya and I:
Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to see the sights in Sydney, as I was only there for one full day, but I did see the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House from the ferry. However, I was staying only five minutes from Darling Harbour, so I ventured down there for a stroll and I really liked the atmosphere there. As Valentines Day is this month, they were marketing it as the Month of Love and they had many romantic activities going on (see picture below). They had also slow (or soppy – you decide!) music on in the harbour, so I felt out of place there walking by myself surrounded by couples eating and drinking! But apart from the seagulls taking everybody’s food (similar to Caernarfon!), I very much enjoyed it there.
I am in the Australian National Preventative Health Agency (ANPHA) tomorrow and Friday, where I will be presenting on the work that’s happening in Wales surrounding alcohol and tobacco. I am a bit nervous, but I’m sure I’ll enjoy it! I will therefore write my last post on Friday night, as I’m due to fly back Saturday morning.
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