About - Smoke Free Philly

About SmokeFree Philly

SmokeFree Philly is part of the Division of Chronic Disease & Injury Prevention within the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. The division focuses on making Philadelphia a healthy, active, and smoke-free city.

SmokeFree Philly also supports the Tobacco Recovery Wellness Initiative (TRWI) with our partner organization, Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services (DBHIDS).

The goal of SmokeFree Philly is to:

Help people to quit smoking.
Stop people from starting using tobacco.
Reduce heart disease, cancer and other illnesses caused by smoking.

Our Work

Support Tobacco Treatment

Helping and supporting tobacco users to quit

Address Secondhand Smoke

Protecting people from secondhand smoke exposure in indoor and outdoor spaces

Raise Awareness

Using policy and media to change norms and raise awareness about tobacco use and its effects

Prevent Youth Initiation

Preventing young people from starting to use tobacco

Our Team

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she/her/hers

Dr. Bettigole is a board certified family physician and has previously served as the Chief Medical Officer of Complete Care Health Network, a federally qualified community/migrant health center in southern New Jersey, and as a Family Physician and Clinical Director with Philadelphia’s City Health Centers, where she saw patients for more than 12 years. She is also a Past-President of the National Physicians Alliance.

he/his/him

Ryan Coffman, MPH, CHES, CTTS-M is the Tobacco Policy and Control Program Manager for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. In this role, he oversees several tobacco control and policy initiatives under the Get Healthy Philly Initiative. These initiatives include the prevention of youth initiation, helping tobacco users to quit, and youth engagement, retail-level tobacco control, promoting tobacco-free environments, mass media campaigns, tobacco control policy, and community partnerships to reduce adult and youth tobacco use in Philadelphia. He is committed to serving vulnerable populations disproportionately impacted by the effects of tobacco use and continues to provide tobacco treatment services Health Center 2 in South Philadelphia.

she/her/hers

Melissa Damast is the Tobacco Control Specialist for Get Healthy Philly, the Chronic Disease Division of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. Her work focusses on youth sales prevention and retail initiatives to reduce youth and adult smoking in Philadelphia, and to prevent young people from starting to use tobacco. Most recently through the tobacco-free retail project her work promotes the notion that retailers can remain viable and successful businesses and not sell tobacco products. She works with community partners who provide technical assistance and resources to businesses who want to transition to not sell tobacco. This healthy retail initiative is a unique collaboration of Get Healthy Philly’s tobacco and nutrition programs. She has a Master’s in Public Health from Temple University.

she/her/hers

Jarma J. Frisby is the Tobacco Treatment and Wellness Coordinator for Get Healthy Philly. Her work is focused on changing perceptions about tobacco use and treatment sharing evidence based information to help smokers quit. Recently, she was a part of the team that assisted 16 acute inpatient psychiatric and extended acute inpatient treatment facilities successfully implement tobacco-free treatment policies. In addition, Jarma offers technical assistance to employers who wish to create a tobacco free cultures, helping to identifying best practices for integrating tobacco treatment and reducing exposure to secondhand smoke into existing health and wellness activities. Jarma has worked for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health for 20 years and holds a Master of Science degree in Health Services Administration.

Annaka Scheeres is a Research & Evaluation Associate for Get Healthy Philly. She conducts statistical and geospatial analysis for a variety of projects within the division, including the Philadelphia Beverage Tax Evaluation and several citywide campaigns. She received a B.A. in Environmental Studies (Geography concentration) and a B.S. in Biology from Calvin College in Grand Rapids, MI. After graduating in May 2016, Annaka was a Summer of Maps Fellow at Azavea, a geospatial analysis company in Philadelphia, where she was the project manager, GIS analyst, statistician, and software developer for projects with the American Red Cross and the Chemical Heritage Foundation. Previously, she was a research fellow for Calvin’s Geography Department, visualizing ecological and social injustices within the local watershed.

she/her/hers

Muna Tefferi, MPH is a Senior Program and Policy Analyst at the Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Division of Chronic Disease and Injury Prevention. Muna manages mini-grant opportunities and provides technical assistance in policy development, implementation, and evaluation. She works with multiunit housing owners, property management companies, condominium associations, colleges & universities, early childhood education providers, unions and other partners to help increase tobacco-free spaces in Philadelphia.

she/her/hers

Roshona Thomas is the Tobacco Special Projects Coordinator for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health (PDPH) Division of Chronic Disease & Injury Prevention. As the Tobacco Special Projects Coordinator Roshona organizes internships for students interested in real world experience in public health. She also cultivates and maintains partnerships with organizations throughout Philadelphia. Prior to joining PDPH, Roshona interned at Environmental Health Services with the City of Philadelphia. There, she created a hand washing video to educate food establishment employees on proper hand washing techniques. Moreover, she assisted with a multi-agency effort to enforce food safety, building safety, and liquor control laws. Roshona earned her BS in Public Health from Temple University, and enjoys music, cooking, and green spaces.

she/her/hers

Ronelle Nemshick (Yanuzzi) is a Drug Prevention Coordinator / Tobacco Treatment Specialist for the Tobacco Policy and Control Program for the Philadelphia Department of Public Health. In this role, she provides tobacco treatment services to patients as well as staff in health centers throughout Philadelphia. Prior to joining our team, she worked as a Prevention Coordinator to help educate youth, parents, and members of the community about underage drinking, prescription drug misuse and abuse , and the opioid epidemic. Ronelle is very passionate about helping others succeed, especially when it comes to their health. Ronelle graduated from East Stroudsburg University where she received a B.S. in Public Health with a concentration in Community Health Education. She has also been certified as a Master Tobacco Treatment Specialist through the University of Pennsylvania.

she/her/hers

Elissa Martel is the Community Engagement, Media & Design Specialist for Get Healthy Philly. In this role, Elissa oversees the Division’s media and communications strategy, including the development and implementation of mass-media campaigns and managing Get Healthy Philly’s social media platforms. Prior to joining Get Healthy Philly, Elissa worked at a public high school in New York City, where she connected students to enrichment opportunities outside of school. Elissa earned her BA in English from Wesleyan University. Join our online community, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

she/her/hers

Pramiti Singh, MPH is a Youth Wellness & UX/UI Web Design Specialist. Her work focuses on supporting and connecting youth to opportunities for healthy eating, physical activity and smoke-free living. Pramiti supports a network of youth leaders and youth-serving organizations for tobacco prevention, education, and policy efforts and works with partners to increase youth participation and perspective in our work. She manages the division’s website design needs as well as develops health communications materials. Pramiti holds an Masters of Public Health from Temple University in Global Health.