Nurses and smoking

[ashleyh_84]

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?

[EastCoast]

Loved smoking when i did it. Considered myself a 'heavy' smoker. Thrilled I was able to quit. Felt it was one of my huge vices through school/work/stress. I have now found out that there are other ways to manage issues.

I don't point fingers at nurses/health care providers who smoke. I am not crazy about the overwhelming smell when someone just comes in after a butt however I can't be hypocritical.

Proudly, when i was in management I never smoked on hospital premises. I feel looking at the smoking area and see a bunch of managers makes the staff wonder why they have so much time on their hands. It is still my pet peeve. And I can agree with those who say smokers have more breaks...At least where i work they do. I've heard it countless times "i need to go have a quick smoke"...."i'm just going to run outside really quick"..etc

lastly, the only thing that truly annoyed me: the self-rightous non smoker and especially one who was overweight. A study showed last year that people who didn't smoke and were inactive/heavy were at risk as a smoker who was active. There are many different ways of killing yourself.

[boopchick]

The decision to smoke or not is a personal choice. It doesn't matter what line of work you happen to be in. BTW I am not a smoker. I'm sure that there are not many (if any) of us that can honestly say that we don't make choices in our lives that can have detrimental effects on our health. (i.e. alcohol, unhealthy eating, etc.) I know there has been alot of anti-smoking legislation in my area in recent years. While I can understand the rationale, it isn't illegal to smoke cigarettes and I feel that personal freedoms are being slowly taken away. If we let the government regulate what is/isn't healthy for us, your weekend cocktail or favorite meal may be next on the "for your own good" hit list.

[Nursie30]

Originally posted by lateblumer

I think that as healthcare professionals, we have an image to portray, that being one of health and well being.

A clean white uniform doesn't appear to be so clean when the person in it is surrounded by a cloud of smoke or smells like an ashtray.

Do our patients really believe the information we try to teach them when we reak of cigarettes? How honest is your word when smoking is one of the leading causes of death?

As an ex-smoker of 18 years, these were all things I considered on my way to quitting smoking.

Well, I am a smoker, I don't wreak of ashtray, we have to smoke outside, I freshen up after my breaks...

Bottom line we have to teach, we have to preach, if our patients aren't listening to us about smoking its probably not because the nurse that was preaching smells like cigarettes its probably because the patient is just addicted to smoking as the nurse that is preaching is.

Just as I am overweight and have to tell my patient to eat right, and stay off the sweets.

Just as I have to tell teenagers to use condoms and not have premarital sex and I had a son when I was 18 out of wedlock

I'm not unprofessional, I am human, and patients can also relate to someone that doesn't have a god complex.

[OC_An Khe]

To those of you who continue to smoke and use tobacco, thanks for the future job security.

[Nursie30]

Might as well put those who eat at McDonalds too, or how bout those of us who drive while talking on cell phones, or even better than that, those of us that put in way to many hours on our jobs and run our selves ragged?

[Joe Hill]

Originally posted by ocankhe

To those of you who continue to smoke and use tobacco, thanks for the future job security.

Another Angel of Mercy...

[lisaloulou]

With my luck, I'll quit then get hit by a bus.

[mrsabradford]

I'm not a nurse yet, but I use to teach. I remember teaching my high school health class. When the time came to teach "my kids" about smoking. One kid said, "Yeah right, you are telling us all about not smoking and I bet you stand outside of the school with the other teachers and puff away on your cigarett."

I felt like a hypocrite and

I DON'T EVEN SMOKE!!!!

I had to tell the entire class that I don't smoke nor have I ever. I felt awkward having to explain myself to the kids. But they are right, I personally feel that it is very unprofessional to be in the HEALTH profession and not care about you own health. If you don't care about your own what makes me (the patient) think that you care about my health.

Unlike being overweight you have to eat to live but you don't have to smoke to live. I've seen one neighbor die of emphysema this year due to his smoking. Now, I have another neighbor that has just been diagnosed with the same thing.

As a child, I used to always get asthma attacks from having to endure second hand smoke from inconsiderate smokers. I live in NY so I no longer have to deal with that due to the strong anti-smoking laws.

I'm not lecturing anyone. You chose to smoke and you will choose to live longer or to die. The choice is yours just be conscious of how your actions appear to patients and reflect on non-smoking health professionals.

[itsme]

Just because a person smokes, be it a nurse or anyone else, it does NOT mean they do not care about there own health. Nicotene is addictive, alot of people get addicted to smoking as teenagers, trying to fit in or for what ever reason. I dont know many smokers who just decided one day in there adult years "hey, I think I might like to be addicted to nicotene". You will learn more about addictions in nursing school. By the way I am a recent non-smoker.

[mrsabradford]

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[itsme]

Thanks!!

[Marie_LPN, RN, LPN, RN]

EVERYONE'S health habits are future job security! Nuff said!!