Nurses Who Smoke

Nurses General Nursing

Published

I have one question....... WHY?

i started smoking when i was in my teens....have tried to quit sev'l times.

i don't preach to my pts w/copd/lung ca/emphysema/asthma who have been smokers.

i started smoking to be cool and accepted by my peers.

now i am physically addicted.

and i completely respect the rights of non-smokers.

i do not respect the judgements however.

btw bob, do you have any vices?

leslie

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OK , I have to pipe up...(pardon the pun)

Why? Because it is an addiction.

Bobnurse, there are lots of things that are bad, proven to cause illness, injury or death:

Driving without a seatbelt

Being overweight

Not eating 5 servings of fruit a day

Choosing a donut instead of a plain bagel with non-fat cream cheese

Drinking to excess

Drinking too much coffee

Not drinking enough water

Not wearing a helmet

Not having regular check-ups

Chewing tobacco

Talking on a cell phone while driving

Red dye #5

MSG

Processed foods

I'm guessing you're not guilty of any of these. But even if you were, I don't think it's any of my business why...

I always drive with a seatbelt

I exercise 5 times a week and am not overweight

i eat 3-5 servings of fruit a day

I dont eat donuts or bagels

I dont drink alcohol

I dont drink coffee, but do drink tea on occasion

i drink a gallon of water a day

dont have a motorcycle, but if i did, i'd wear a helmet

I go to the doctor twice a year

I do talk on the cell while driving, but i use a hands free most of the time

I dont chew tobacco or smoke

No MSG, except for the occasional chinese food

and eat smal amounts of processed foods........

I hope i answered your questions. Now before someone begins to attack me like the poster did, i eat healthy and live mostly a healthy life, as ive seen what living a sedentary, mcdonalds diet has done. Its a personal preference that i dont push on anyone.

There are always those who are hostile, and apparently under stress, as this poster. I asked a simple question as to why smoke? You see the dangers it causes..... I didnt attack anyone, say it should be banned.........Just a simple question as to why? Just to satisfy a curiousity........So no reason to be hateful, as nobody is being hateful to you.

Im curious how many mechanics out there let there car go 10,000 miles without an oil change? How many landscapers let their lawns go unmowed for weeks..........In their profession, they see the damage not changing your oil can cause...........BUt we as nurses ignore it..........SO to reask my question---Why?

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Specializes in Neuro/Med-Surg/Oncology.

Take the smoke break, even if you don't smoke. I've done this from time to time and it was only brought to my attention once. I then pointed out that some people were going out every hour for a smoke and I took five min for some fresh air once during the afternoon. Haven't heard about it since. You're right it isn't fair and some people take advantage of it. Also, whether or not you smoke, you should be getting a five minute breather every few hours. No one should be a martyr. If they can go out for a smoke, they can certainly cover for you for five or ten minutes if you need it.

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Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.
:angryfire it drives me crazy!!! if a nurse smokes she/he gets to take breaks whenever they "need a smoke", the rest of us don't get little breaks every other hour. i work on a cardiac unit, many times we have to initiate a smoking cessation with a patient that just had an mi or a stroke, how can nurses that do smoke, honestly tell patients that they can't anymore!!! errrrr

it's not my job to tell anyone what they can or can't do. all i can do is educate a person, make resources available, and let the person make their own decision.

how can you tell your diabetic patient he/she can't have the cake with 1200 calories, but you can since you're not diabetic?

how can you tell your stroke or mi patient that he/she needs to lose weight if you yourself are overweight? (not saying you are)

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:angryfire it drives me crazy!!! if a nurse smokes she/he gets to take breaks whenever they "need a smoke", the rest of us don't get little breaks every other hour. i work on a cardiac unit, many times we have to initiate a smoking cessation with a patient that just had an mi or a stroke, how can nurses that do smoke, honestly tell patients that they can't anymore!!! errrrr

before i went to nursing school, i had an office job where the entire clerical staff, but me, smoked - so they all went out together for smokes and left me to man the busy phones (the office manager was a smoker, so it was no use - i stated my displeasure to her until i was blue in the face!) - which was not my job to do - we had a receptionist who had a pack and a half per day habit, but when they were out, i was the backup!!

but as long as i am not exposed to second hand smoke (remember when doctors and nurses could smoke at the desk??) and no one is expecting the other nurses and ancillary staff to do what they are supposed to be doing, then i really can't hold it against them - but i do hope that they have the desire and the success in quiting.

j

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Specializes in Telemetry, ICU, Resource Pool, Dialysis.

Umm, Bob, I'm sorry if I seemed "hostile" to you!! "Hateful" ? I don't think I was attacking you. You asked a question, I answered. With some extra food for thought. I'm really glad you lead such a healthy lifestyle! Not all of us are perfect.

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Smoking is proven to cause lung cancer........

Yes, however lung cancer does not exist in all smokers, and not all non-smokers are free of lung cancer. My grandfather smoked a pack/day for 83 years, and died at 91 of natural causes.

And no, I don't smoke.

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For Pete's sake. Nurses are people too. They get hungry , tired and cry just like normal people. And unfortunately addiction doesn't hand pick people. No one is immune. I gotta say...I really find this thread pointless.

z

Well said!

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Specializes in ER, Burns and Plastics.
Smoking is proven to cause lung cancer........

Unprotected sex, you are playing russian roulette with diseases and pregnancy, but not guarenteed.......

The same could go with occasional drinking and the diet.........But smoking is proven.

I remember taking offence to this in high school, but my chemistry teacher said that it has never been absolutely proven that smoking causes lung cancer. He said that there have been numerous cause and effect studies, but no quantitative/qualitative randomized and stratified experiments. He said that to have a 'beyond a doubt conclusive' study would involve following a group from birth, and ensuring that everyone in the experiment smoked their allotment of cigarettes a day (zero, in the case of the control group). He said that an experiment such as this would be unethical because where smoking is strongly implicated in lung cancer as a causative factor, it would be like seeing how much cyanide was safe for long term use, or something to that effect. Or compare it to Supersize Me (that movie where the actor ate nothing but McD's 3x/day for a month; his health was very adversely affected), and ensuring that someone (possibly against their will, and certainly without informed consent) put their health in such jeapordy.

Anyway, I agree that smoking is VERY STRONGLY linked to lung cancer.

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I remember taking offence to this in high school, but my chemistry teacher said that it has never been absolutely proven that smoking causes lung cancer. He said that there have been numerous cause and effect studies, but no quantitative/qualitative randomized and stratified experiments. He said that to have a 'beyond a doubt conclusive' study would involve following a group from birth, and ensuring that everyone in the experiment smoked their allotment of cigarettes a day (zero, in the case of the control group). He said that an experiment such as this would be unethical because where smoking is strongly implicated in lung cancer as a causative factor, it would be like seeing how much cyanide was safe for long term use, or something to that effect. Or compare it to Supersize Me (that movie where the actor ate nothing but McD's 3x/day for a month; his health was very adversely affected), and ensuring that someone (possibly against their will, and certainly without informed consent) put their health in such jeapordy.

Anyway, I agree that smoking is VERY STRONGLY linked to lung cancer.

I thought it was proven, thats why they changed the warning on the cigarette packages from may cause to does cause? Maybe i heard it wrong.

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:stone

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C'mon guys, the only people where I work who get a break are the smoker's. Considering taking it up just to get a break, 12 hours is long time!

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