Why is the NHS going Smokefree?
We are now asking people not to smoke at all on hospital grounds, not even outside.
Smoking remains the leading cause of preventable death and 1 in 4 people admitted to hospital smoke tobacco, and half of all smokers will die from a tobacco related disease. This has a direct impact upon the number of patients in hospital and requiring care.
Tobacco addiction commonly starts in childhood and is not simply a ‘lifestyle choice’, rather it is a chronic and treatable dependency.
There are very successful treatments for tobacco dependence available on the NHS and as healthcare professionals, it is our duty to offer these to patients and staff, to help them avoid the entirely preventable diseases and early death that are associated with tobacco.
Tobacco Dependency Treatment Teams are now working across hospitals in the Humber and North Yorkshire region, supporting in-patients and maternity service users to stay Smokefree.
This is now a standard part of NHS care at secondary care sites. All you have to do, is refer the patient to the Team upon admission.
Please see your Trust intranet for site specific information
For more information on what to do and how you can save a life, click here.
