One of the policies of our health care system that I receive the most complaints about is our 100% no smoking policy on any property whether you are outside or inside a building.  The policy is logical to me since the dangers posed to non-smokers from second hand smoke are documented.  Also as an institution dedicated to improving health it would be inconsistent to encourage being healthy and encourage smoking at the same time.

Everyone once in a while a patient tells me they are glad we have a no smoking policy.  This always gets my attention.  Hearing people speak favorably about the policy is an infrequent event for me.  Several patients tell me that after a hospital stay of several days when they have not smoked they have a resolve to continue to cease smoking when they are discharged.  I have not done any record keeping to be able to tell you what the percentage of patients is who resolve to cease smoking.  I have no data on how many are able to keep their resolution when they are discharged.  I love the idea that our enforced no smoking period is helping patients make a change in behavior that not only helps improve their health but also helps improve the health of those around them.