Countywide : Lung Association to Counsel Latinos

The Ventura County branch of the American Lung Assn. has become the first in the nation to offer culturally specific counseling to help Latinos quit smoking, the local organization announced Friday.

The branch made the change because the old system of translating role-playing situations and exercises without regard to cultural norms was not effective, said Beatriz Herrera, the group’s bilingual tobacco education consultant.

One of the program’s new elements allows nonsmoking family members to attend meetings to provide them with greater support, Herrera said.