Hospital: no smoking policy reversed
Thursday, October 1, 2009 At last, a little bit of common sense. Great Western Hospital in Swindon has reversed its no smoking policy - that is, no smoking on hospital grounds - because of fears for the safety of staff forced to smoke on the busy road outside.
Hospital bosses will now re-erect two of the hospital’s dismantled smoking shelters. Mark Bagnall, director of estates and facilities management, said: "A risk assessment identified certain safety issues arising from staff and patients congregating at the entrance of the hospital.
"Especially with many staff working through the night there is no guarantee they would be safe standing at the side of the main road either from passing vehicles or other people.”
"In an ideal world," he added, "we would not have to make these changes but staff and public safety comes first and I feel we have made the appropriate choice here."
OK, staff (and patients) still have to smoke outside but it's good to see this particular juggernaut stopped in its tracks. Let's hope other hospitals do the decent thing and follow suit. The important thing to take from this is: no smoking policies can be reversed.
Full story HERE.
Reader Comments (19)
Glad to see that sanity has prevailed in at least one hospital.
Talk about a crazy idea in the first place, the wanker who thought that one up should be fired immediately but because it only involved smokers I guess he/she are still in situ on a big fat wage robbing the tax payer again.
Its fearful enough for a person to have go into hospital but can you imagine the horror for a smoker when he realises there is no protected place for him to smoke at the worst time of his life.
But dont for a minute be fooled into thinking that hospitals are thinking about their patients welfare.
Its more likely a 'report' costing millions was carried out by their advisors/consultants/spin doctors/ whatever you like to call them, and they realised that if hospital staff or a patient was stabbed or injured while smoking on the street, they would be held liable and that would never do.
Far more cost effective to be maimed inside rather than outside the premises.
We are so lucky to have the 'welfare' state.
Yes, great news Simon but as you say it's a "little bit of common sense."
This all came about because of the efforts of Freedom2Chooses's resident lawyer and brenda jorsler from the F2C forum. They have put a lot of work into this.
But as you can see from the link you provided that the 'shelter' provided is far from adequate, as far as the Smoking Ban Experiment is concerned. Smokers are still being treated as lepers and forced out to the boundries of the hospital concerned, this will not do!
Still, a concession is a concession but the fight goes on.
"because of fears for the safety of staff forced to smoke on the busy road outside..."
Nice to see the hospital is thinking of the patients!
Well done F2C for getting this concession.
"In an ideal world," he added, "we would not have to make these changes ............."
No, you TOSSER - in 'an ideal world' human beings would be able to smoke INDOORS.
You know - like they USED to not so long ago, before the PRICKS at the WHO decided that THEY could run the Planet AND the lives of its inhabitants better than anyone else - and all the little politicos and health-care professionals thought it might be a jolly good wheeze to let them.
And you and your pals could go back to the business of CARING for people. Which is what we PAY you for!
In-an-ideal-world...............
(Apologies to all for for going a bit Youtube-ish there)
"This all came about because of the efforts of Freedom2Chooses's resident lawyer and brenda jorsler from the F2C forum. They have put a lot of work into this."
http://www.swindonadvertiser.co.uk/news/4635380.Hospital_accused_of_breaching_act/
We hope to succeed similarly with many more hospitals.
I wonder to what extent the REALITY here is that the hospital was trying to forbid smoking IN THE FRESH AIR and that people, including staff, were complaining and threatening to go to court. It would not surprise me if the real reason for backtracking was to avoid such a court case.
The stuff about staff being in danger sounds like 'rationalisation' to me. Hasn't the answer to such objections (staff, patient dangers) always been, "Give up smoking then"?
Maybe they should set up special places for heroin addicts to go and inject too. It’s so unhygienic them having to hide it in the hospital toilets!!!
Is it the hospitals fault all smokers are drug addicts that just absolutely NEED to have a "STICK OF DEATH"! At least heroin addicts don't force their habit on every person walking past them. I find it quite a shame people are unable to live their lives without drugs to complete them. It's quite sad. And any smoker that says he/she is not addicted is a liar. They try to justify it saying it is merely a treat/pleasure, but at the cost of such displeasure and irritability when they stop does it really balance out. The only reason it’s even legal is because the government makes so much money taxing it. I hope it’s more than the money they spend on the NHS for all the smoking related diseases. All for something taken up because of peer pressure and rebellion.
"All for something taken up because of peer pressure and rebellion."
Absolutely, Labrys !
We're all just mentally-deranged, maladjusted, conformist sheep on this site.
And that's something you could NEVER say of the more militant non-smokers !
"I hope it’s more than the money they spend on the NHS for all the smoking related diseases."
No, Labrys, it's NOT ! In fact, The latest statistics from my friends at ASH conclusively PROVE that the cost to the NHS (the ONLY thing in Life that matters, really) of having to treat Smoking-Related Diseases is equivalent to the Defence Budget AND the NHS budget AND the GDP of Lithuania COMBINED.
Not surprising, really, since Smoking is now KNOWN to be responsible for 99% of ALL diseases - from scrofula to ingrowing toenails.
Dating back AT LEAST to Roman times.
Some people just WON'T listen though (the morons).
And why ? Because a TINY minority (under 0.005% of the adult population since 2007) of people have made it their SOLE aim in Life to inflict pain, misery, discomfort, and disease on their fellows.
Sad, I know.
But YOU won't ever weaken, I'm sure..........
Labrys -
1. I don't force my habit on anyone - I don't force a cigarette into anyone's mouth
2. smokers not only pay for their own health care, they also pay so much in duty that they pay for that of others
3. not all smokers started because of peer pressure or out of rebellion (my mother, for example, started smoking when in her 40s!)
4. I know smokers who smoke only on certain occasions.
5. If some smokers do suffer severe withdrawal symptoms don't you think that they ought to be shown some understanding and accommodation in stressful situations such as finding themselves having surgery or coping with bad news?
Hallo Labrys, may I suggest that there must be something in your life which you need, which is lawful and which contributes to your sense of well-being. For a moment, imagine what it would be like to be denied it at a time of great vulnerability, even condemned for wanting it. I might have no way of comprehending why you need it and I should recognise its importance to you. And provide for it. To deny you would be an act without mercy. Hospitals have acted without mercy in their treatment of smokers and their relatives, none more so than of the old and frail.
I got news this morning that I need surgery. I was offered a choice of hospitals. I opted for the one with the less draconian smoking ban (ie it has a 'designated area' within the grounds). It could be argued that the ban adversely affects decision-making. As for stopping in order to minimise risk - stuff them - I'm more likely to contract MRSA from the p**s oor standards of care in my hospital 'of choice' (I've had the misfortune to be an in-patient there before) or pneumonia from having to go outside in winter to smoke.
Sounds like somebody's been on the bottle. Alcohol is officially a more dangerous drug than tobacco.
Joyce -
Good choice !
And the Greatest of Good Fortune attend your visit..............
Nothing to do with hospitals I know, but I have only just seen this youtube clip and I thought I would like to share it with everyone here. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBRGEJrv6Jg
I haven't been on here much of late, as I am busy working on a project which I simply need to get finished as soon as possible.
Hope you all like what you see here, if you haven't already seen it.
Peter -
Many thanks for the link. It's VERY sad, though, that there aren't more Tory and Labour MPs taking the same sort of Common Sense/Common Humanity stand on this issue PUBLICLY.
Private words of sympathy from the odd MP here and there are just not enough, frankly. And, as we've seen recently, you can't even trust THEM.
The problem with MPs from the Big Three these days is that they have ALL become 'institutionalised'. Whenever they need to formulate an opinion on any major issue, they therefore tend to seek the advice of other organisations (commercial or public) - ignoring the obvious fact of any built-in bias towards a certain position. It makes life so much easier for them that way. The BBC is no different.
And the tactics deployed to force us towards a world-wide smoking ban are exactly the same as those use to force us into an integrated European Superstate.
Jean Monet (and friends) correctly assumed that the IMMEDIATE destruction of the Nation State (and the democratic polities which supported it) would not be too popular with the peoples of Europe - especially just after a war in which millions had fought for Freedom.
Hence, of course, the Incrementalist Approach: take away one grain of sand at a time, and NO-ONE will notice. Until it's too late, that is.
And - paradoxically - people's natural reluctance to embrace Change would prove a most dependable ally to the Apostles of One World Government, and THEIR revolution.: we are where we are, and it's too much effort to go back.
And when even 'conservative' MPs declare themselves to be 'progressive', what chance is there of EVER going back ?
They, too, have been infected with the mania of Change For Change's Sake.
To stand AGAINST is to stand ALONE (which takes guts).
People nowadays tend to forget that National Socialism, too, was seen as 'progressive' in the Thirties. 'Conservative' it was not.
The same softening-up process has occurred with the Smoking Ban. What government - acting on orders/advice from the WHO mekons - would have been rash enough back (say) in 1970 to institute an IMMEDIATE ban, in ALL offices, ALL factories, ALL ships, ALL aircraft, ALL hospitals, ALL buses and trains, ALL clubs, ALL pubs ? To say nothing of parks, streets, and even private homes (as in Bellmont Ca.).
Yet, here we are.
Given time, people can be MADE to accept ANYTHING. Even concentration camps (and - incidentally - if nobody 'knew' about them, what sort of 'deterrent' would thay have been ?)
As with 'Europe' - the bastards haven't finished yet.
Not by a LONG way.................
Thanks for your good wishes, Martin.
Wonder how Cameron's going to deal with the thorny issue of a UK referendum now that the juggernaut's about to pick up speed...
Joyce -
I expect that Mr Wriggly will wriggle.
I've come to 'expect' little else.
Cameron McCameron, the new Laird of Blairshire, will NOT wish to be the one to upset the Eurocart: Tony wouldn't like it.
Cynical - moi ?
Maybe. But - compared to THESE buggers......
PS:
On second thoughts, 'Eurotank' would probably be more appropriate.
Is it coincidence that Mandy's come back into the fold (with honours), Brown's still propped up in place and Blair's President-in-waiting? Cynical - moi? Most definitely.
Joyce -
They're just shuffling the deck. And among the Court Cards:
Tony = The King
Gordon = The Joker
Mandy = The (um................)
I'm now waiting for Cameron's 'Britain's-got-to-take-a-new-direction-and-we're-the-ones-to take-her-there' speech.
Destination ? Irrelevant.
It's gonna be tough, folks - but SOMEONE'S got to move the deck chairs...............