Smoking is prohibited throughout the hospital grounds.
Tobacco smoke is responsible for millions of deaths each year from diseases such as lung cancer, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and chronic respiratory diseases. In particular, passive smoking is becoming a worrying issue, especially in enclosed spaces such as hospitals.
Hospitals are crowded places, including many patients with poor health, vulnerable to environmental factors such as cigarette smoke. Therefore, creating a smoke-free hospital environment is essential to protect the health of patients, medical staff and the community.
Research shows that smoke-free hospital environments help reduce risks associated with passive smoking, thereby reducing the incidence of dangerous diseases and the risk of death.
Bach Mai Hospital is one of the pioneers in building a smoke-free hospital in Vietnam, with campaigns to educate about the harmful effects of tobacco and a complete ban on smoking on hospital grounds since 2015. In addition, the hospital also provides smoking cessation support services for patients and medical staff.
Similarly, Hanoi Medical University Hospital also implemented measures to ban smoking throughout the hospital, and implemented many health education programs for medical staff and patients about the harmful effects of tobacco.
In the South, Can Tho Central General Hospital is one of the major hospitals that has implemented the smoke-free hospital model. The anti-smoking measures at the hospital are strictly applied, with close coordination between medical experts and community organizations.
Cho Ray Hospital (HCMC) has also actively promoted and implemented the smoke-free hospital model for many years.
Smoke-free hospitals will become models in health care, helping to raise public awareness and create a healthy living environment for everyone.
However, in reality, in many medical facilities, patients' relatives still defy regulations, find quiet places in the hospital to smoke, even openly smoke in the hallways, outdoor areas of the hospital, sometimes right under the no smoking sign. They deal with regulations by stubbing out cigarettes or avoiding security guards.
Need to be more drastic
One of the basic measures to build a smoke-free hospital is to issue regulations prohibiting smoking throughout the hospital, including indoor and outdoor areas. Hospitals need to deploy clear signs and instructions so that patients and their families understand this regulation.
Hospitals should provide smoking cessation support services such as psychological counseling, nicotine replacement therapy, and smoking cessation programs for patients and staff.
Hospitals need to organize activities to promote and educate patients, their families and the community about the harmful effects of tobacco. Talks, leaflets and media campaigns can help raise public awareness about protecting health and quitting smoking.
To truly create a smoke-free environment, hospitals need to provide designated smoking areas that are completely separate from patient areas. These areas need to be ensured to not affect the clean air of the hospital.
Health care providers can work with community organizations, government agencies, and non-governmental organizations to create a broad support network to help people quit smoking.
Experts also stressed that more drastic measures are needed, and strict monitoring measures will ensure compliance with the drug ban in hospitals.
