Not hired if you smoke?

rnsusan · Sep 25, 2011

I dread my patient's parents who are already stressed out and then told they have to go cold turkey from nicotine if our campus goes smoke free. Security will be very busy.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Sep 25, 2011

The term is Coloradans And it's not crazy to be strong and fit.

I don't even know why I wrote it the way I did. I am sure my lack of sleep played a part, and it was called a joke.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Sep 25, 2011

But....they are not testing for alcohol prior to employment. You are not considered ineligible for employment just because you had a drink sometime within the past 30 days. (And there is also plenty of documentation the second hand effects of alcohol causes a lot of damage, ie: drinking/driving).
Maybe we should ban alcohol and nicotine....Oh wait, they tried that once. Didn't work so well.

That has nothing to do with my post. I was posting in response to someone that said hospitals not allowing smoking on the premises is infringing on peoples rights. I specifically bolded the part of the persons post I was responding to with my statement.

~Mi Vida Loca~RN, ASN, RN · Sep 25, 2011

I dread my patient's parents who are already stressed out and then told they have to go cold turkey from nicotine if our campus goes smoke free. Security will be very busy.

It isn't a problem in my hospital. They go off campus to smoke.

Reno1978, BSN, RN · Sep 25, 2011

I work on a smoke-free campus - while I don't think we go so far as to test for and refuse employment to people who smoke, you will be sent home without pay if you smell of cigarette smoke. I can't think of any of my coworkers that smoke, actually.

As far as patients, we do a tobacco assessment with each admission and if the patient is a smoker, the physician will prescribe nicotine patches to avoid withdrawal symptoms, because they can't go outside and smoke.

milksteak · Sep 25, 2011

I'm a smoker but would never dare smoke on the property. Last place I was at, we had to cross a major street and go into the parking lot where they had a tiny shed (patients were not able to see inside of it, which is a huge factor IMO). I def agree with the other posters about charging higher premiums..which don't they do anyway if you're a smoker /drinker, etc?

MrChicagoRN, RN · Sep 25, 2011

I dread my patient's parents who are already stressed out and then told they have to go cold turkey from nicotine if our campus goes smoke free. Security will be very busy.

I've worked smoke free campuses for 4 years, and its pretty problem free. Families are here to see that their relatives are cared for & respect the rules. We all know that smoking isn't healthy & recognize that society has various behavioral restrictions that vary from setting to setting. Why should health care facilities be any different?

No one is asking them to go cold turkey from nicotine. Where are they smoking now? Certainly not in the patients room! Instead of walking down to a stinky lounge they simply walk outside to the sidewalk or wherever the smoking restrictions end. Although garages and parking lots are probably on-campus; if they choose to smoke in their cars they'll probably be ignored.

Finally, nicotine patches and gum have been around for >25 years. No reason for anyone to go "cold turkey" at all

Isabelle49 · Sep 25, 2011

As long as alcohol and tobacco purchase is legal, it will be around.

Editorial Team / Moderator · Sep 26, 2011

Hmmmmm, this is interesting ... and before anyone jumps my case, yes, I know that Wikipedia is not a fault-free source.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smoker_Protection_Laws

Esme12, ASN, BSN, RN · Sep 26, 2011

in the same example if i want the job and not have to pay increased insurance premiums then i can quit using hair dye or get a job somewhere that does not have those policies, just as those who smoke are free to do the same. it is not a right to have a job. it is a mutually beneficial agreement between two parties. i agree to perform specific functions and abide by certain policies and they agree to pay me an agreed upon wage and benefits. those who are "black, asian, american indian....." have no control over their ethnicity and thus are truly victims of discrimination.

in the same token....if that facility doesn't want that ethnicity then may they should do like you say.... go get a job somewhere that doesn't have these policies against "blacks, asians, native americans...." i don't smoke but i do color my hair. is it really ok by you for an employer to not hire someone because of what they do outside of work or how they look?

i find all of this behavior discriminatory and frightening. a slippery slope to a restricted society based on the haves and the have nots by one persons prejudice and opinion. a policced state. it's not about increased insurance premiums......because they aren't hiring them at all!!!

it's the same as the late 1800's and the nina laws

1860 many irish saw about signs reading "help wanted - no irish need apply"; these signs came to be known as "nina signs." (this is sometimes written as "irish need not apply" and referred to as "inna signs"). these signs had a deep impact on the irish sense of discrimination.

dis-crim-i-na-tion

/dɪˌskrɪməˈneɪʃən/ show spelled[dog-scrim-uh-ny-schuhn] show ipa

noun [color=#333333]1. an act or instance of discriminating.

[color=#333333]2. treatment or consideration [color=#333333]of, or [color=#333333]making a [color=#333333]distinction in favor of or against, a person or thing based [color=#333333]on [color=#333333]the group, class, or category to which that person or thing belongs rather than on individual merit: racial and [color=#333333]religious intolerance and discrimination.

3. the act of exclusion of person or persons

it's not right it's just not right..... :devil:

joanna73, BSN, RN · Sep 26, 2011

I wouldn't necessarily agree with refusing to hire someone because they smoke, but, as I said in an earlier post, l can understand the rationale to a degree. In Canada, except for maybe Quebec, everywhere is virtually smoke free, and has been for quite some time. You cannot smoke anywhere on the property of most facilities, not just healthcare. It's everywhere. People get used to it.

Yes, it's your choice to smoke. However, everyone else around you doesn't have to breathe that in. I'd rather not get lung cancer from second hand smoke, thanks. Smokers unfortunately have less rights. That's the way it is. I also don't think this argument is in the same league as being of another ethnicity. Smoking kills people, and we're trying to promote health.

2bTraumaRN2008 · Sep 26, 2011

My campus is "smoke-free", but patients and famililies constantly go outside to smoke!!! It can't be stopped know matter how much they try!! All they're told, if they're caught, is to put the cigarette out...big deal....they just light up another one later. Bottom line - It can't be controlled no matter how much these facilities try to enforce it!!! Also, I was recently at a smoke-free facility as a visitor, and guess what, I went outside and fired up my cigarette and I will continue to do so!!!

I am a smoker myself, and YES, I do clock out and leave my facility for "lunch/dinner". They can not stop from from doing this...it's called Labor Laws...I am entitled to it, without pay, and I can do whatever I want during this time...It's against the law to stop me from doing something on my unpaid time away..It's already been looked into by my facilitly, which is why we are allowed to leave campus.

Now, I happen to be a smoker, and have for many, many years, and I am ALOT healthier than those who don't smoke, on my unit that is....I also sit at 99-100% on the pulsox, and my BP runs in the low 100's over 60/70's...so, am I in bad shape? I think not..I am lucky if I miss 1-2 days a year, if that, while others (non-smokers) miss a day every month or every other. Just sayin...