My hospital is going SMOKE FREE!!

CCLOUD9 · Oct 28, 2009

Hey all, This is my second post regarding the same subject. Sorryfor the duplication. I was having difficulty looking for my orignal thread.

Thanks everyone for ur posts!

Christina RN

loriangel14, RN · Oct 28, 2009

My facility(a hospital in Canada) went smoke free a couple of years ago. You cannot smoke anywhere on the property and we do offer the patch to any pt that wants to quit and there is a program for employees as well. The only way pts can smoke is if they can get a friend/family to take them off the property for a smoke.

readytoroll · Oct 29, 2009

I work at a an LTC and we are smoke free. We have One resident who was grandfathered in and is allowed to smoke at scheduled times. Employees have to walk out into the field next to the facility to a little bench and bucket, which is surely unpleasant in the winter and rain!

TampaTech · Oct 29, 2009

Ill tell you what. The hospital that I work at is smoke-free as well. They say that pt's arent allowed to go downstairs and smoke but they still do and there is nothing that can be done about it. I dont think that hospitals are not going to make them sign out AMA either because then they will be loosing alot of money and they wont take too kindly to that sort of thing just to let some people to go down and smoke. Now unfortunately as a smoker myself it doesnt bother me that a hospital is smoke free because if so then I will figure something else out. I go off the property on the sidewalk and take my break. But if you ask me having patients that walk around outside on the hospital grounds on the sidewalk looks more trashy than having a designated smoking area for the staff and patients.

chenoaspirit, ASN, RN · Oct 29, 2009

I agree with TampaTech. But also, if a patient is charged thousands of $$$ for a hospital room, especially for an extended period of time, they should have some place to go. The hospital becomes there home for a while. I had patients go out to the sidewalk to smoke and get injured, either by falling or the cold temp will mess up the IV pump, they get wet from rain, cold from snow, etc. I dont think employees should ever smoke in front of the building because patients have to walk thru the cloud to get inside. But I do believe that everyone should have a SAFE place to go, out of the rain and snow.

CandyGyrl1985 · Oct 29, 2009

I am a smoker myself. I do not mind if my employer is smoke free. I will either suck it up and go without for the day or go where I am allowed like in my car down the street.

However, I do agree with the other posters about patients smoking. It is great to encourage patients to quit, but I think there are liability issues with having pts. smoke outside or having a patient sign out AMA. In the past when I have been in the hospital I have been to sick to smoke or I just didnt want to waste the energy - going across the campus, so I would not smoke. A lot of smokers can do the same, but for a select few smoking is such an addiction that they might rather sign out AMA than do without.... Which almost sounds like refusing health care if the patient choses to smoke a legal substance.

And lets not forget the family members that smoke... GOD LOVE THEM... Sometimes they are already up tight as it is, and if there only option is to leave campus, that might make them extremely aggitated and guess who would get the brunt of that - the nurses. Or on the other hand, you have the family members that are trying to cope with a loved on who is extremely ill and smoking might just be there release. I know when my father died, I needed a smoke. The campus was smoke free, but I didnt care, I smoked out in front of the building and had this look that told the security guard to just let me be.

Smoking is a yucky, smelly, UNHEALTHY habit. But to some it is an emotional and physical addiction... Not to say it is right - but I think the best option is a secluded, safe area on campus, away from the main areas that is designated to smoke - with no employees allowed to smoke.

Just my thoughts.... The idea of promoting smoker awareness is awesome, I just think there are a few flaws in the system.

TampaTech · Oct 29, 2009

I too agree with candy girl. Our pt's have to go around outside and smoke on the sidewalks and whatnot. The area that my hospital is located is not the safest neighborhood as well. It is also dark and there is a liability that pt's can get hit by cars (hospital is pretty close to the road) I dont complain about the issue to people but the hospital I used to work at they had a designated smoking area for pt's/visitors/staff, people there would complain about the pt's coming out bugging us on our breaks but, i would just tell them that atleast the campus isnt smoke free so this is the best way to prevent pt's from wandering the very large campus and getting lost and not being able to make it back into the facility. Plus if there ever was a medical emergency the pt's arent somewhere by themselves lying on the ground dying. Talk about a liability there. All in all, the smoke free policy doesnt affect me to much i just have to walk to the sidewalk with a few people and take my break. Thats all :)

diane227, LPN, RN · Oct 29, 2009

I don't know where you live, but if you live in the US your facility was supposed to have been smoke free a long time ago. This became a JCAHO requirement years ago.

CCLOUD9 · Oct 30, 2009

Hi Diane227,

I researched what you had written. :eek: According to the Joint Commission website under the general info tab, the smoking policy as of 1992 was that smoking was prohibited in accredited hospitals.

Just to clarify, there is no smoking "on" the campus. And there is definately no smoking "in" the hospital. :smokin:

Hope this helps,

Christina, RN

cowritten by Liz, RN:yeah:

CuriousMe · Oct 30, 2009

Speaking as a (nonsmoking) patient, I SO appreciate hospitals that have nonsmoking campuses. I HATE having to run the smoker's gauntlet when my asthma flares to the extent that I need to go to the ER. And more often than not, it was smoking staff members that I was trying to hold my breath (which is quite a trick when I can't get out more than 2-3 words before taking another breath) as I get past the fumes.

And even that is better than the ER nurse I had who reeked of tobacco to the extent that I needed to ask for another nurse (tobacco smoke--even on someone's clothes--is one of my biggest triggers. It really ticks off my lungs).