How NHS Quit Smoking Works

If you are aged 18 years and over, registered with the NHS in England, and have been referred by an NHS hospital or NHS Trust tobacco dependency team, you may qualify for FREE remote video consultations and treatment to help you quit smoking.

The NHS Quit Smoking Service is available to patients who have started smoking cessation treatment during a hospital stay and wish to continue their quit journey after discharge. NowPatient’s qualified Stop Smoking Practitioners will support you through a 12-week programme, without having to visit your GP.

NowPatient clinicians provide:

• Behavioural support to help you stay smoke-free
• Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – patches, lozenges, gum, oral spray, inhalator, nasal spray, or sublingual tablets
• Cytisinicline (prescription medication)
• Varenicline (prescription medication)

If treatments are prescribed, they are dispensed and delivered FREE to your home from NowPatient’s online pharmacy.

The FREE service is subject to a hospital referral and eligibility screen. If you are not exempt from NHS prescription charges, one single NHS prescription charge applies when medication is supplied. You’ll make your exemption declaration at checkout.

The following medications may be prescribed by your Stop Smoking Practitioner, subject to your clinical assessment:

Prescription Medications

• Cytisinicline 1.5mg tablets – A full course of 100 tablets to support your quit attempt (Cytisine)
• Varenicline 1mg tablets – Including the 2-week treatment initiation pack (Champix)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Patches

24-hour patches:

• Nicotine 21mg/24hours patches (NiQuitin, Nicotinell TTS 30)
• Nicotine 14mg/24hours patches (NiQuitin, Nicotinell TTS 20)
• Nicotine 7mg/24hours patches (NiQuitin, Nicotinell TTS 10)

16-hour patches:

• Nicotine 25mg/16hours patches (Nicorette Invisipatch)
• Nicotine 15mg/16hours patches (Nicorette Invisipatch)
• Nicotine 10mg/16hours patches (Nicorette Invisipatch)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Lozenges

• Nicotine 4mg lozenges (NiQuitin Mint, NiQuitin Minis Mint, Nicorette Cools)
• Nicotine 2mg lozenges (NiQuitin Mint, NiQuitin Minis Mint, Nicorette Cools, Nicorette Fruit)
• Nicotine 1.5mg lozenges (NiQuitin Minis Mint)
• Nicotine bitartrate 2mg lozenges (Nicotinell)
• Nicotine bitartrate 1mg lozenges (Nicotinell)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Gum

Nicotine 4mg medicated chewing gum (Nicotinell Fruit, Nicotinell Mint)

Nicotine 2mg medicated chewing gum (Nicorette Freshmint, Nicorette Fruitfusion, Nicorette Icy White, Nicotinell Fruit, Nicotinell Mint)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Oral Spray

• Nicotine 1mg/dose oromucosal spray (Nicorette QuickMist Freshmint, Nicorette QuickMist Cool Berry, Nicorette QuickMist SmartTrack, Nicotinell Rapid Relief)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Inhalator

• Nicotine 15mg inhalation cartridges with device (Nicorette Inhalator)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Nasal Spray

• Nicotine 500micrograms/dose nasal spray (Nicorette Nasal Spray)

Nicotine Replacement Therapy (NRT) – Sublingual Tablets

• Nicotine 2mg sublingual tablets (Nicorette Microtab)

Your NowPatient Quit Smoking Clinician will discuss the most suitable option for you based on your medical history, previous quit attempts, nicotine dependence level, and personal preferences. Combination therapy (e.g., patches plus a fast-acting product like lozenges or gum) may be recommended for heavier smokers.

Navigate to the NHS Quit Smoking Service Card which can be found in the ‘NHS Hub’ section of the account homepage.

Choose ‘Check Eligibility’ from the Options Menu on the NHS Quit Smoking Service Card and follow the steps below:

Step 1 – Complete the eligibility quiz to see if you qualify. If you do not qualify, we will signpost you to the right NHS care provider or service.

Step 2 – If you qualify, you’ll be prompted to book an initial consultation. Click on the ‘Book Consultation’ button to proceed.

Step 3 – Now, follow the instructions below to complete your booking

The NowPatient Quit Smoking service involves a series of remote video consultations designed to support and monitor your quit smoking progress. The consultations are divided into the following parts:

Initial Stage – This is your first consultation after you have met the eligibility criteria

Interim Stage – This happens a week after your Initial Stage consultation. At this stage, our qualified clinicians will check in on your progress and smoking status. They will also provide ongoing behavioural support and discuss any challenges or side effects you’re experiencing. You will also be prescribed additional medication if needed to ensure you don’t run out

4-week Stage – This happens 4 weeks after your Initial Stage consultation. At this consultation stage, we assess your smoking status at this important milestone. We also record your 4-week quit outcome and discuss continuing treatment to help prevent relapse. You will also be prescribed additional medication if needed to ensure you don’t run out. This is a key milestone in your quit journey. Research shows that if you can stay smoke-free for 4 weeks, you are 5 times more likely to quit for good.

12 Week Stage – This happens 12 weeks after your Initial Stage consultation. At this consultation stage:

• Your NowPatient Clinician will assess your final smoking status
• Your NowPatient Clinician will record your 12-week quit outcome
• Your NowPatient Clinician will provide advice on staying smoke-free long-term
• Your NowPatient Clinician will notify your GP of the outcome
• Your NowPatient Clinician will inform the hospital tobacco dependency team of your progress
• Your NowPatient Clinician will discharge you from the service

The initial consultation should be booked within 5 days of you receiving your hospital referral. During the initial consultation, the clinician will ask you to verify the details from the hospital referral and confirm if you have received any smoking cessation medication on discharge.

The clinician will then ask a series of further questions that will allow the clinician to assess your suitability for smoking cessation treatment options. At the end of the consultation, the clinician will decide if a treatment is a safe and suitable option for you.

If it is, the clinician will discuss the various treatment options that may be available, so that you can jointly agree on the option that is most suited to you. Once you have jointly agreed on a treatment plan, the clinician will issue a prescription order.

Also, with your consent, the clinician will inform your doctor of the treatment that was prescribed. We recommend that you agree to this since your doctor is responsible for your overall care and they should have a record of this consultation and medication prescribed. In addition, our clinician may take the opportunity to advise you on your overall health including advice on healthy living, behavioural support and any other practical advice relating to your prescribed therapy.

At the end of the consultation, if you have been prescribed a treatment, follow the instructions below

You do not need to worry. We will send out reminders for you to book a follow-up consultation, 7 days in advance of the planned dates.

You can expect follow-up invite notifications through the following channels:

• Push
• In-App

NowPatient uses a structured notification system for all orders, ensuring you’re consistently informed about your order status every step of the way.

You can expect status update notifications through the following channels:

• Email
• In-App

All orders are shipped in discreet and unmarked packaging. This means it is suitable for delivery wherever you require (home, work, or a neighbour).

For thermo-sensitive orders we use cold chain-validated packaging. Your parcel will normally receive an estimated delivery window from the courier on the day of delivery.

For your protection and safety, your first order can only be delivered to the address that is registered with NowPatient. Future orders can be delivered to any other address, for example, your workplace.

We currently deliver to all postcodes in England. Some postcodes in rural areas may have a slightly longer delivery time.

We aim to ship all orders placed Monday – Friday before 3pm on the same day. Orders placed outside these times will be shipped the next working day. All deliveries are shipped by Royal Mail, which delivers Monday through Saturday in the UK

Our delivery options have the following delivery times (England Only):

• Royal Mail Standard Tracked & Signed for Delivery for NHS prescriptions – 2/3 day delivery (normally 48 hours)
• DHL Express Tracked Delivery – 1/2 day delivery (normally 24 hours)
• Royal Mail Special Delivery – Next working day (Royal Mail Guaranteed before 1pm)

Delivery is normally made promptly after your dispatch notification is received. You can check the tracking details of your order in the ‘Notification Feed’ section of the dashboard, at any point after dispatch.

Unfortunately, packages can sometimes get lost in the delivery system. If after 10 days you have not received your delivery, please contact us and we will do all we can to resolve the problem.

Yes. The NHS Quit Smoking Service is classified as a Class I medical device under UK MDR 2002 regulations, for its intended use. It also complies with NHS standards DTAC, DCB 0160 & DCB 0129.

This is a FREE service for NHS-registered users in England. If you are prescribed medication at the end of your assessment and you are not exempt from NHS prescription charges, then you will need to pay a single NHS prescription charge. If you are exempt from prescription charges, for example, if you are on Income Support or aged over 60, then you will not be charged.

Yes, as an NHS patient, our clinicians will be able to access your GP record including medications, observations, and investigations. This ensures our clinicians are able to assess you appropriately.

Yes. NowPatient operates from a HIPAA, DTAC, and Cyber Essentials Plus certified compliant platform that assures the highest levels of information security and allows us to safely handle PHI (Patient Health Information). Clinicians who access our systems do so on a zero-trust basis backed with SSO technologies.

Our clinicians are board-certified pharmacists who are qualified to prescribe selected medications for smoking cessation, as outlined by the NHS.

Each clinician is registered with the appropriate regulatory body – for example, pharmacists & pharmacy technicians are registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC). All clinicians undergo thorough background checks, including a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, as well as a comprehensive license verification process. When you book an appointment, you’ll be able to view the clinician’s full name, license number, and any specialist credentials.

The medications and conditions our clinicians can prescribe and treat is strictly governed, risk-assessed, and regularly reviewed in line with NHS guidelines. Our service is delivered via remote video consultations (synchronous consultations), which help ensure clinical safety and appropriate prescribing. Please note that medication is not guaranteed and is provided only at the discretion of the assessing clinician and based on NHS eligibility criteria.

During the virtual consultation, we will obtain a consent from you for providing this service. This is required so we can communicate with your GP and provide information to NHS England, NHS Improvement, and the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) if required.

No. This service is only available in England. It is sponsored by the NHS.