Nurses and smoking

Nurses General Nursing

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  1. Is it ok for nurses and doctors to smoke?

    • 280
      Yes, Its their body.
    • 192
      No, its not very professional.
    • 54
      Other, explain

462 members have participated

Do you think it is ok if a nurse or a doctor smokes? Because i know when i go to the doctors office with my boyfriend and he tells him that he smokes that he gos on and on of how he shouldnt be smoking at all. But then we go outside and see nurses smoking and such!! So what do you guys think?

No different than everyone who has a glass of wine after a long hard day to unwind, or the person who first thing upon entering the kitchen in the morning grabs their cup of coffee or soda before heading off to work. Everyone uses something be it a substance or behavior to cope with life on a day to day basis. Some of us make healthier choices than others. The key word is choice, it is ours to make, each & every one of us. I do however feel that we do not have the right to impose our personal choice on others, most especially our children. As for the lingering smell of smoke on a person, how many of us use perfume or cologne, scented body lotion?? I can't begin to tell you how many times I have had to smell some god aweful perfume or cologne which I find equally as offensive as the smell of smoke. Lastly, I am not critisizing but rather presenting differing points of view for most of all I belive that if you live in a glass house, & we all do, then you should not be throwing stones.

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I think that it's not "unprofessional" for nurses/doctors to smoke, but being as informed as we are about the dangers of smoking, it seems pretty dumb to continue to smoke. Especially because we actually SEE what it does to people right in front of our eyes. (ex. a 60 yr. old who looks 80 or 50) BUT I don't think that it's anyone's right to judge or say that it is unprofessional... unless you are telling your pt.s not to smoke and then going outside and smoking where they can see you. We all know what we SHOULD be doing, but what we actually do is another story. I tell my patients to exercise 3-4 times a week... right... good thing they don't see me at the gym... :)

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Originally posted by TitaniaSidhe

No different than everyone who has a glass of wine after a long hard day to unwind, or the person who first thing upon entering the kitchen in the morning grabs their cup of coffee or soda before heading off to work. Everyone uses something be it a substance or behavior to cope with life on a day to day basis. Some of us make healthier choices than others. The key word is choice, it is ours to make, each & every one of us. I do however feel that we do not have the right to impose our personal choice on others, most especially our children. As for the lingering smell of smoke on a person, how many of us use perfume or cologne, scented body lotion?? I can't begin to tell you how many times I have had to smell some god aweful perfume or cologne which I find equally as offensive as the smell of smoke. Lastly, I am not critisizing but rather presenting differing points of view for most of all I belive that if you live in a glass house, & we all do, then you should not be throwing stones.

You can smoke all you want as long as it doesn't effect me. But if I have to get up in the middle of the night unable to breath due to my asthma because some A..hole felt he had a right to smoke, but I don't have a right to breath in smoke free air then yes I will be the first one to throw the stone! Where is it?

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.
Originally posted by TitaniaSidhe

No different than everyone who has a glass of wine after a long hard day to unwind, or the person who first thing upon entering the kitchen in the morning grabs their cup of coffee or soda before heading off to work.

Wrong.

A smoker's second hand smoke affects ME. WHen i drink a glass of wine, the other person in the room isn't tasting what i am drinking unless they themselves are having a glass with me.

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Originally posted by itsme

By the way I am a recent non-smoker.

I just woke up, so I'm not completely oriented, but I got tickled because I just read your post saying what I interpret to mean you just started smoking and then in the next post you got congratulated for smoking, then you thanked that person for giving you props. So perhaps I should congratulate you on picking up the habit too? Congrats...hope it all goes in ok.:D

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Originally posted by LPN2Be2004

Wrong.

A smoker's second hand smoke affects ME. WHen i drink a glass of wine, the other person in the room isn't tasting what i am drinking unless they themselves are having a glass with me.

You completely missed my point. My point was we all use something be it a substance; nicotine, caffine, sugar, alcohol or we all use a behavior; control, anger, sex, gambeling, reading, vidio games, chatting online, eating, shopping to cope with life. Some of us use these things more than others, some of us use them to an excess & some of us use them in a healthy manner. In all honesty if we look at ourselves we can all find something we use to cope.

Originally posted by TitaniaSidhe

I do however feel that we do not have the right to impose our personal choice on others, most especially our children.

Now then I do believe or thought I had been clear in this particular part of my statement. You would never breathe my second hand smoke as I never smoke around someone without first asking if they are bothered by my smoking. If they reply yes I refrain or I go elsewhere so as not to be disrespectful. I do not smoke in my home b/c I feel that just b/c I smoke does not give me the right to impose my choice on my children. I smoke outside. I will smoke in a resturant if there is a smoking section. I might suggest that if this bothers a non-smoker that much then perhaps they should choose a resturant that is completely non-smoking. There are more & more of them avaliable by the day. If I am already standing outside in the open air then please tell me how exactly you would be breathing my second hand smoke, I mean short of standing right next to me or being in a crowded area. BTW in a crowd I will not light up either as I realize this would perhaps not agree with others in close proximity. I wait until I am in the clear area then step aside & enjoy my cigarette. People go on & on about the health hazards of smoking, the expense & such. Yes there are health hazards with smoking but are there also not a great many health hazards from another legal drug named alcohol? Physical health issues, rehab costs, court costs, prison costs, not to mention the cost of increased ins. premiums b/c of DUI accidents & such related issues. People killed b/c of DUI drivers. Damn I could go on & on with that one. Yes I did compare alcohol & nicotine as they are both addicting substances. If you have your glass of wine with your dinner why can't I step outside & have my cigarette after dinner?

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how can any of us judge? we give patients lots of advice, suggestions, and m.d. orders to follow, but how many of those exact directions do you follow yourself? why is smoking any different? nurses are regular people too. we eat too much, we are very overweight, we drink too much, party too hard, and are promiscuous....etc..etc..etc...i pray none of you think you are above others for this one habit.

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I dont really care if someone else smokes - it IS their body after all, but I prefer not to, and never have...

The only thing that really bugs me is when I have to walk through a throng of smokers into a building and breathe their smoke...

That drives me nuts - especially when there are signs posted and the cigarette bin isnt anywhere near where they are standing - it is 20 feet away from the door where they should be...

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I too am a nurse that smokes, but I am not even allowed the luxury of doing this during my lunchbreak because it is against the hospital policy. This is fine, I go all day without a ciggerette.

But on Christmas eve, it was a pure day from ----. I was taking a patient out in a wheelchair. Before I took the patient down, I went to my locker, put a ciggerette and my lighter in my pocket. The patient got in the car - uneventful. I was in the lower parking garage. I hurried and stooped down between a couple of parked cars. I lit my ciggerette and took 3 puffs then stamped it out and hurried back into the building. As I got inside, out of no where, there was a security guard -- chasing me. He caught up with me and said:

" you were taking quite a big risk out there". I didn't know what to say, so I just said "yes, I guess I was". I don't even know where he came from. like I said, I was stooped between a couple of cars and only took like 3 hits off my ciggerette. Anyway, he said very matter of factly "DON'T LET IT HAPPEN AGAIN".

I am not proud of the fact that I smoke. I know it is hazardous to my health. but this is RIDICULOUS. What is this? Communism? I do not ever leave my floor to smoke. I do not make other people watch my patients to go smoke. I had a really bad day, and took three puffs and got chased like i WAS defecting my country or something. This is really OUT OF HAND.

i quit. i have another job. i still want to quit smoking, but i don't need to be chased around like a common criminial. for crying out loud it was a ciggerette, not a joint or some other illegal drug.

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l've tryed to give up smoking so many times, always make it a few months then l bust, l really wish l didn't smoke.

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Specializes in obstetrics(high risk antepartum, L/D,etc.

I quit smoking in 1992. I was up to >2 packs a day, and was nurse manager on my unit and could smoke in my office. I was ready to quit -- besides, my bronchitis told me to quit. It was easy.

Now I must tell you how I did it. I was going to a week-long retreat where they wouldn't let us smoke. I figured I would have to find a really good hiding place. Then I decided this was the best time to quit, since they told us that we would be busy all the time. I had no idea that they meant 20 hours a day! At the end of this week, I got into my car, and habitually began to look for a cigarette. I had none--panic!--then I realized that I hadn't had one for a week, and was past the very hardest part of quiting. I made a promise to me that I wouldn't smoke again. I still have urges sometimes, but I fend them off, remembering how good it good it feel to say,"No smoking, please" Now that they are so expensive, I'm extra glad not to need that crutch.

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As health care professionals we are suppose to educate our pt. about the health risk associated with smoking;if we do it why should our pt's not do it, why should they listen to us. Are we immune from illness because we are health care professionals.

"Practise what we preach."

:confused:

Excuse me, I have to disagree with this. In no way is any nurse perfect. Tell me, just because a nurse smokes does not mean he/she can not teach their pt's the health risk associated with smoking. This includes ETOH use. Those who drink even occ. are they also included in on your study? What about sex, pregnancy, missing work for a mental day, and boy can I go on. Think about it. Nurses are the teachers. You can teach your pt's anything. Even if you dont believe in it. But face it, it is what is best for the pt. It is what is required of a nurse. Do you eat ice cream, french fries, and meat? Do you then tell you cardiac and diabetic pts proper eating?

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