Renaissance Centre to host “Clearing the Air: Navigating COVID-19, Tobacco Cessation & Vaping Realities” Thursday

The Town of Wake Forest is partnering with Wake County to host “Clearing the Air: Navigating COVID-19, Tobacco Cessation & Vaping Realities” Thursday, Feb. 15, from 6-7 p.m. at the Wake Forest Renaissance Centre, 405 S. Brooks St.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the use of e-cigarettes is unsafe for kids, teens, and young adults. Most e-cigarettes contain nicotine which is highly addictive and can harm adolescent brain development. Youth e-cigarette and cigarette use have also been associated with mental health symptoms, including depression.

The February 15 workshop will explore these, and other health risks associated with smoking and teen vaping, offer effective tobacco cessation strategies, and share the latest on COVID-19.

Free and open to all, the event will feature an interactive panel discussion moderated by Dr. Rasheeda Monroe MD of the UNC School of Medicine and Director of the Kenan Urban Scholars. Panelists will include Dr. Stefanie Etienne MD, Medical Director/Family Physician at WellCare of North Carolina; Bolu Abe-Latham, Physician Associate at the Duke Smoking and Tobacco Cessation Program; and Michael Scott, Program Manager at the Center for Black Health & Equity.

Registration is encouraged but not required. To register, visit https://bit.ly/FocusonMentalWellness.

This event is part of Wake Forest’s Focus on Mental Wellness series and Wake County’s Ask the Doc Town Hall Meetings. For more information, email Community Outreach Manager Andrew Brown, Jr. at [email protected].