Shae Marden quits smoking with Quit the Nic

Shae Marden, a Blue Care Network member since 2004

I smoked for 16 years. I tried to quit smoking a few times before I was part of Blue Care Network. I would always quit for about a month and then go right back to smoking. I wanted to quit to be healthier, get into shape and breathe easier. Finally I took advantage of Blue Care Network’s free stop smoking program, Quit the Nic.

My last cigarette was Wednesday, July 22, 2009 at 10:50 p.m. I’ve got the date in my cell phone. When I started Quit the Nic I said I’ll be smoke free within the next 30 days. I quit on the twenty-ninth day. I said I’m never going to smoke again, and I haven’t.

On her medical care

I think having preventive benefits is essential. Not having to pay for or worry about them is definitely important.

I love my primary care physician, Dr. Tobin. He’s awesome. He was cheering me on when I quit smoking. I’ve found that having a primary care physician helps a lot. He knows what’s covered and that information helps me. Also, it’s really good that a doctor’s office does referrals electronically. It’s much less of a headache than having to pick up a paper referral and take it to a specialist.

After a hospital stay, I visited my primary care physician and he already knew everything that happened to me medically. It’s not up to me to keep him updated on every detail. I was in the hospital for an emergency, he found out all the details.

And care management was unbelievably helpful after I was released from the hospital. Because of Blue Care Network, an aftercare nurse came to my house once a week. I had a PICC line to my heart so I could take care of my medication at home. I didn’t have to go to the hospital for the medication since the aftercare nurse checked to make sure everything was OK.

On getting information and help

When members join Blue Care Network, we get a card and we care that doctor visits are covered, and that’s most important. We don’t think about everything available. It’s neat to go to to the website to find information I need. That’s how I found Quit the Nic. I’ve also registered for Member Secured Services and used it to check on why I had a copay. It showed me what services were rendered. I’ve also called Customer Service and found them really helpful. I’ve never called and found a cold or mean person.