UI Rehabilitation Therapies

Quitline Iowa

American Cancer Society

Holden Comprehensive Cancer Center: Smoking Cessation

Smoking has not been allowed within UI Hospitals and Clinics since the early 1990s and any outdoor smoking was to be at least 30 feet away from any of the entrances. Beginning July 1, the hospital campus, including parking ramps 1 through 4, will be 100 percent smoke-free. Jane Knipper, RN, and UI Hospitals and Clinics pulmonary rehabilitation program coordinator says UI Hospitals and Clinics and many other Iowa hospitals are answering a call from the Iowa Hospital Association, the Iowa Attorney General's Office, and the Iowa Consortium for Comprehensive Cancer Control to reduce exposure to secondhand smoke by making our campus smoke free. Research shows that secondhand smoke is a significant source of disease even when the exposure occurs outdoors.

"Smoking is the number one health risk in America today," says Knipper," not only for smokers themselves, but for non-smokers via secondhand smoke. Secondhand smoke is rated by the Environmental Protection Agency as one of the most dangerous cancer-causing agents, causing approximately 3,000 lung cancer deaths and 35,000 heart disease deaths in adult non-smokers in the United States each year. More than 440,000 people die prematurely each year from smoking related diseases.

"Everyone, staff, patients, and visitors, on the UI Hospitals and Clinics campus is expected to adhere to the no smoking policy. A map that defines where smoking is prohibited will be posted at most entrances to the Hospitals and Clinics," she says.

Supervisors will be notified of faculty and staff who violate the policy by smoking in areas designated as non-smoking. Staff who repeatedly violate policies are subject to progressive discipline with the goal of correcting the behavior. In addition, the Appearance Policy has been updated to help address complaints about staff whose clothing smells of smoke.

"The goal of the smoke-free policy is to reduce the risk for disease among our faculty, staff, patients, visitors, volunteers, and students by decreasing their exposure to secondhand smoke. If the new policy encourages smokers to quit, that would be an extra bonus," says Knipper.

She says there are several options available to staff who would like to stop smoking:

• Rehabilitation Therapies offers a Stop Smoking Clinic.
• The Employee Health Clinic within the hospital offers free counseling to staff.
• Quitline Iowa is a free phone-based counseling service that is available to anyone by calling 1-866-822-6879. The Quitline is available 8 a.m. to midnight, 7 days a week.
• For people looking for self-help information, the Cancer Information Service in the Clinical Cancer Center has free brochures. They can be reached at 1-800-237-1225 or 356-3000.

If staff members do not want to stop smoking, they should have a personal plan for how to get through their work day without violating the smoke-free policy, says Knipper. "They may want to consider using nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) during the work day to minimize or eliminate nicotine withdrawal symptoms. NRT is available over-the-counter in the hospital Ambulatory Care Pharmacies for staff as well as visitors who might want to use it while they are on the campus. Although NRT is available to visitors, they may still choose to smoke, but to do so they will have to leave the hospital campus.

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