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?

Specializes in ICU/CCU, Rehab, insurance, case manager.

I smoke when i was a teen up 15-19 about a pack a day near my last year, I quit in less than a week cold turkey, its mind over matter. DETERMINATION !!!. and not to be nasty it is not my intention but the nurses that state they freshen up after their smoke breaks, it still stinks and yes we can smell you. as i said i don't mean this as an insult but its the truth and in all honestly if i was the patient much less your co worker i don't want to be near you smelling it.

as i said this sounds nasty but its the truth.

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I smoke.

I am not a nurse yet...but will be.

I know that I would LOVE to quit. Cigarettes are a nasty disgusting habit.

I have not made it 24 hours since I started smoking when I was 20 (13yrs ago).

I smoked thru the pregnancy of all 3 of my kids. yes I cut WAY WAY back..but no excuse...it's pathetic that I risked my kids health like that.

i"ve tried cold turkey...makes me crazy.

tried zyban....which I think would have worked for me had I followed my instincts and quit on day 4 instead of waiting til the 2nd week like my dr insisted.... so that didn't work at all.

tried patches

tried gum..

I truly wish I had never started.

I don't overeat, drink or have any other 'habits'...

I don't even buy lottery tickets, or over shop....

this is my ONE vice.

and I want to quit.

I truly wish that there were an easier way to quit smoking.

Someone told me recently that quitting smoking cigarettes is worse thatn crack!

and it's LEGAL!

amazing..

well no point passing the buck...I chose to smoke so it's my own fault that I"m now addicted.

but i'm always on the watch for new methods to break my addiction.

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i was a smoker.

it's very hard to quit. i remember thinking it would be easier to quit if i was in a coma in some hospital.

you have to really be committed to quitting.

the only thing i have to say that a smoker should think about (besides the obvious health risks) is that you smell awful....something fierce. you can't smell it. everyone else can. i am actually embarassed that my kids probably spent the first 11 years of their lives smelling like a stale butt.

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Unfortunately, I smoke too but I call myself a closet smoker because I'm so ashamed to be a nurse (LVN) who smokes. It just feels like I'm a total hypocrite. I agree about the smoke breaks though. There's no excuse to leave a busy floor just to puff on a cancer stick. I never have time to anyways and even if I did there's always charting to do. I have a little trick I do before I come on the floor after a cigarette. I spray myself with a little Febreeze I keep in my purse and pop a breath mint. Febreeze is great because it's strong enough to mask the nasty smoke smell but light enough that it won't be obvious or offensive or allergy inducing to patients and staff. Wow, I sound like a commercial. Anyways, yes I'm a hypocrite and yes I've tried to quit but as long as it doesn't interfere with my job performance and my patients don't know it, then it's my business. Okay, nuff said.

Jenn

great idea, jenn!! i am in the same boat with you. i am lucky if i get time for 1 smoke during the entire shift, and i am the supervisor. it is all a matter of perspective. but many, many thanks for the febreeze idea.

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this thread gives me a perfect opportunity to use two of my favorite quotes by two of my favorite americans. first, abraham lincoln: "prohibition goes beyond reason in that it attempts to control a man's appetite through legislation. a prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principals this country was founded upon". and mark twain: "now what i contend is that my body is my own. if i do harm through my experimenting with it, it is i who suffers, not the state".

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Well, how interesting. I am about to attempt to quit smoking and I am so scared. I've attempted in the past and failed, so I know how hard it is. I am starting on the zyban this morning. I will use the patch when the time comes. I may go to acupuncture. I wish I knew a good hypnotist, I would do that too. The last straw for me was that my 16 yr old informed me she is moving out, in with her Dad because there is just too much smoking around here. I am ashamed, hurt, and my heart is broken. I pray I can succeed this time. I know I smell bad, and am ashamed of that too. It is not an easy thing to quit. Non-smokers and those who didn't smoke for long and quit, have no idea how hard it is.

~Tutti~

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We have a problem on our floor w/smokers, they like to take their smoke break just BEFORE shift change, which means I am getting report having to smell their fresh stink. sometimes its really nauseating. I also work w/a tech, who is great, but takes 5-6 breaks a night. I need to say something to her, I just don't want to rock the boat, as everyone works really well together.

I'll take any advice on this one.

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.

One of those little battery-operated mini-fans would help circulate air. You might have to get maintenance to approve it before you can use it.

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Specializes in LTC, ER, ICU, Psych, Med-surg...etc....
I am a smoker and wish I had time for "smoke breaks"!! I too barely have time to pee!!

I agree 100%. I am also a smoker and am lucky if I get to smoke, let alone pee or eat! I often keave work, get in my car and realize I am about to burst and that I have not had time even for a coke! Oh well, I know the risks, but it's my choice. :rolleyes:

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Specializes in LTC, ER, ICU, Psych, Med-surg...etc....
We have a problem on our floor w/smokers, they like to take their smoke break just BEFORE shift change, which means I am getting report having to smell their fresh stink. sometimes its really nauseating. I also work w/a tech, who is great, but takes 5-6 breaks a night. I need to say something to her, I just don't want to rock the boat, as everyone works really well together.

I'll take any advice on this one.

Tell your tech plain and simple...no smoke till the work is done.... :smokin: :nono:

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A 54 year old, very well liked, nurse that I know was just diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer. Beautiful, beautiful person. Of course, she has always been a heavy smoker. She has gone through chemo and radiation and has lost all her hair. The other day I saw her standing outside smoking a cigarette! I just don't get it! Yes, it is a personal choice, but it still makes me mad as hell!

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A 54 year old, very well liked, nurse that I know was just diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer. Beautiful, beautiful person. Of course, she has always been a heavy smoker. She has gone through chemo and radiation and has lost all her hair. The other day I saw her standing outside smoking a cigarette! I just don't get it! Yes, it is a personal choice, but it still makes me mad as hell!

That is so sad. Nicotine addiction (and all other drug addictions) can be overwhelmingly powerful. I know, because I unfortunately smoke. I have quit for a year or two at a time, but always manage to start again. I work w/ other smokers who just reek. There is nothing more awful than a health-care worker reeking of smoke. I carry a small bottle of Febreze with me and spray myself all over with it, when I've smoked at work. I also wash my hands very thoroughly and chew "Eclipse" gum afterwards. I guess it works, because people are always surprised when they find out I smoke. I hate to see that look of disapproval in their eyes.

I am ebarrassed to be a smoker. :chair:

(Please, no flames and "So, why don't you quit?" comments. All smokers know they need to quit).

Reminds me of a joke I heard-

Customer to clerk in drug-store, 1953:

(Loudly) "Can I have a pack of Marlboros?" (whispering) "and some condoms?"

Customer to clerk in drug-store, 2003:

(Loudly) "Can I have some condoms?" (whispering) "and a pack of Marlboros?"

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