Smokers need not apply?

[RainMom]

So I've reached my 2 year mark & getting a little restless, toying with the idea of moving into a different dept or facility. I was looking at a website for another hospital & they have posted that they will no longer hire anyone that uses nicotine which will be screened for during the employment physical. Not an issue for me, but I found the bold underlined statement a little jarring. I understand that in healthcare we want to promote healthy lifestyles, but dictating personal legal habits to employees is a bit of a push don't you think? Is this common in other areas & just reaching my neck of the woods?

[i_love_patient_care]

I agree with everyone about covering other people for their breaks so they can go out and smoke. It hasn't been an issue for me recently, since I switched to home health. I just had to move back in with my Mom and she smokes. It doesn't matter where she goes outside to smoke, it still comes into the house when she comes in and stinks up all the furniture. E-cigs have been a godsend. She could tell my asthma was getting flared up from the smoke and decided to move to e-cigs and it's a win-win.

[brandy1017, ASN, RN]

I'm not a smoker, but I think people smoke for stress relief and we all know nursing is a very stressful job. On top of that it is the smokers that make sure they get their breaks. Whether people started smoking before or after they became nurses, I think that link to getting your breaks and smoking makes it harder to stop. I hate that America is becoming a big brother police state where discrimination and mandation is legal and acceptable. So much for freedom and individual rights! Someone will invariably reply you have the right to not work there, whatever! What happens when every employer does the same thing as is fast becoming the case with both smoking and flu shots, and I dread what else they will come up with next! I wish I could retire already and say goodbye to all this control freak madness!

I'm sick of the lie that nursing is a profession, what a joke that is when we are told what to do or not and monitored via computers all day long! It is reminding me more and more of the pink collar ghetto word processing job I once had which combined both assembly line production with micromanagement. The only job worse for that was data entry which monitored your keystrokes all day long and God forbid if you needed a bathroom break because your fingers had better be on the keyboard or else! It is a sad day for workers in America, and make no mistake; we are just as much a "worker" as the CNAs, housekeepers, truck drivers and garbage collectors. The only difference is we spent years and thousands of dollars in student loans to get to be treated like this and told we are "professionals" therefore we are expected to go above and beyond and do everyone else's job for that so called privilege, but don't forget to punch the time clock lest we are overpaid!

[jcbhappy]

Smoker. Rn. Hard worker. Stressed. Work 12's and enjoy the fact that my facility is smoke free. Smells irritate certain illness and I am proud that when I decide to divulge the fact I smoke to a select few that they say "WOW never knew!!" (Again a compelling reason Not to share a FB page with co-workers...). My habit, no need to share the stink, choose your brand carefully and the more natural the nicotine, the less the smell. Please do not judge the co-workers who have yet chosen to work the 12 without the fix of nicotine. I can go a day or so without a cig (or pack) depending on my current activity. Please remember that every time we are told no about a personal habit/choice, that is one step closer to losing a constitutional right. Just sayin'.... P.S. don't get me started 'bout the flu shot:yes:

[ComeTogether, LPN]

Yes. We can ALL smell it on you. You (and every other smoker) stink. When you spray ozone or febreze or perfume to try and mitigate the odor, then you just smell like cigarettes AND whatever else you sprayed. That's even worse for your respiratory patients or your coworkers with asthma and allergies. It doesn't matter if you keep your work clothes in a separate closet. It doesn't matter if you don't smoke in your home or car. The odor is emanating from your hair, your skin, your breath.

Sent from my HTC One X using allnurses.com

Yes I know. I do the best I can and don't smoke at work. I know I don't smell of it at work because no one knew I was a smoker and when they found out were surprised and actually told me I didn't smell of it.

I wasn't asking a question....I was stating one of the things I hate about being a smoker.....thanks for pointing all that out though.

[ComeTogether, LPN]

You can get electronic cigarettes that have no nicotine in them. My original intention in using them was to slowly decrease the nicotine levels I was using, eventually going to zero nicotine. Alas, haven't been able to get to that zero level yet and still smoke regular cigs at home. It is a nasty habit for sure. I've heard others say that it's harder to quit smoking than it is to quit heroin. Never done heroin so I can't personally vouch for that.

Yeah I should probably have the same goal. What kind do you use? Is it an actual e cig or a PV?

[ComeTogether, LPN]

Smoker. Rn. Hard worker. Stressed. Work 12's and enjoy the fact that my facility is smoke free. Smells irritate certain illness and I am proud that when I decide to divulge the fact I smoke to a select few that they say "WOW never knew!!" (Again a compelling reason Not to share a FB page with co-workers...). My habit no need to share the stink, choose your brand carefully and the more natural the nicotine, the less the smell. Please do not judge the co-workers who have yet chosen to work the 12 without the fix of nicotine. I can go a day or so without a cig (or pack) depending on my current activity. Please remember that every time we are told no about a personal habit/choice, that is one step closer to losing a constitutional right. Just sayin'.... P.S. don't get me started 'bout the flu shot:yes:[/quote']

Same here. Every single person I've confessed my dirty secret to was surprised. I also don't think smoking belongs at a hospital...even on break, but when I get off I'm lighting up if I choose!

What people are complaining about here....the extra breaks, smell etc are all non issues if your facility is tobacco free....

I've never taken an extra break or expected any special treatment because of my habit.

[SoundRN7]

Yeah I should probably have the same goal. What kind do you use? Is it an actual e cig or a PV?

Mine is an E-cig and I get them online from a place called Vapor4Life.

[elkpark]

Smoker. Rn. Hard worker. Stressed. Work 12's and enjoy the fact that my facility is smoke free. Smells irritate certain illness and I am proud that when I decide to divulge the fact I smoke to a select few that they say "WOW never knew!!" (Again a compelling reason Not to share a FB page with co-workers...). My habit, no need to share the stink, choose your brand carefully and the more natural the nicotine, the less the smell. Please do not judge the co-workers who have yet chosen to work the 12 without the fix of nicotine. I can go a day or so without a cig (or pack) depending on my current activity. Please remember that every time we are told no about a personal habit/choice, that is one step closer to losing a constitutional right. Just sayin'.... P.S. don't get me started 'bout the flu shot:yes:

Let's not get too worked up about our "constitutional rights" here. In the first place, smoking isn't a "constitutional right." Second, you might have some kind of point if it were the government telling you you can't smoke. It isn't; no one is. You have all the "right" in the world to choose to smoke, and employers have an equal right to choose not to hire smokers. What's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander, as the saying goes. (Same thing with flu shots; no one is forcing anyone to have a flu shot -- some employers are choosing to make it a condition of employment, and they have a right to do that.)

[KelRN215, BSN, RN]

Smoker. Rn. Hard worker. Stressed. Work 12's and enjoy the fact that my facility is smoke free. Smells irritate certain illness and I am proud that when I decide to divulge the fact I smoke to a select few that they say "WOW never knew!!" (Again a compelling reason Not to share a FB page with co-workers...). My habit, no need to share the stink, choose your brand carefully and the more natural the nicotine, the less the smell. Please do not judge the co-workers who have yet chosen to work the 12 without the fix of nicotine. I can go a day or so without a cig (or pack) depending on my current activity. Please remember that every time we are told no about a personal habit/choice, that is one step closer to losing a constitutional right. Just sayin'.... P.S. don't get me started 'bout the flu shot:yes:

Smoking is a constitutional right? Which amendment is this? Oh, right, it's not. A private sector employer making decisions about who not to hire has nothing to do with the constitution or the government.

No one is telling you that you can't smoke. You can do whatever you choose, you just might find yourself without a job if you choose to continue smoking.

[ThePrincessBride, MSN, RN, NP]

I'm perfectly okay with smokers not being a protected class. I get so frustrated when my fellow aides go out for smoking breaks for fifteen, twenty minutes, while I'm busting my ass on the floor by myself. Not to mention just how unhealthy smoking is and the burden smokers place on the healthcare system.

[BuckyBadgerRN, ASN, RN]

I'm perfectly okay with smokers not being a protected class. I get so frustrated when my fellow aides go out for smoking breaks for fifteen, twenty minutes, while I'm busting my ass on the floor by myself. Not to mention just how unhealthy smoking is and the burden smokers place on the healthcare system.

What in the world would EVER make them a protected class?

[traumaRUs, MSN, APRN]

Many of the hospitals in my area require a nicotine test along with blood test and no, they won't hire smokers.