Hospital works to stub out smoking

Maury Regional Medical Center is renewing efforts to educate the public about smoking hazards as cigarette use continues to be a problem on the hospital’s campus.
Hospital Chief Executive Officer Alan Watson said all properties owned by the hospital have been smoke-free since 2008 — but not all visitors have been obeying the smoking ban. He told county commissioners during the health and environment committee meeting Monday it has been “very difficult” to enforce the ban during the past five years.
“We are seeing some sign blindness among our visitors,” Watson said. “We actually have some visitors leaning up against ‘no smoking’ signs as they are smoking.”
As a result, Watson said the hospital intends to renew efforts to educate the public, volunteers, physicians, nurses, patients and employees about smoking hazards. He said additional signage will be put up on Maury Regional properties and extra efforts will be made to communicate the smoking ban to patients and visitors.
Additionally, Watson said the hospital will be asking security to help enforce the ban in a “non-confrontational manner” and educating the public through more signage and information about smoking. He said the hospital will also be doing more to pick up cigarettes left on the ground.
“It’s not a pretty picture when you come onto our campus and see cigarettes all over the grounds,” he said.
Rita Williams, a spokesperson for the hospital, said the ban will also include the use of e-cigarettes on the hospital’s campus.
“There are some unknowns with the e-cigs,” she said. “They do create a vapor, and it still isn’t certain what is in that vapor.”
Williams said the hospital has done several studies in the local community about the effects of smoking and lung cancer on residents.
“We found lung cancer is a huge problem in this area,” she said. “We see it in our cancer center every day. We are trying to be a leader in the community and to protect people from second-hand smoke.”
Watson said Maury County places “in the worst quartile among more than 2,800 U.S. counties” for lung cancer-related deaths. He said smoking is the largest contributing factor to diagnoses of lung cancer, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, coronary heart disease, stroke and other cancers.
Watson said it is the hospital’s responsibility to keep all of its patients and visitors protected.
“Our goal is to ensure that everyone who visits one of our facilities is protected from the dangerous effects of tobacco products,” Watson said. “As the regional leader in health care, it is our responsibility to prohibit smoking on the grounds of our facilities in an effort to protect everyone from the dangerous effects of smoking.”
Tennessee’s “Non-Smoker’s Protection Act” went into effect on Oct. 1, 2007, which makes it illegal to smoke in most workplaces including health care facilities and “common-use areas” of buildings.