Dr. Nguyen Dinh Tuyen - Director of Quang Ngai Province Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital - affirmed that when recruiting, the hospital will not accept men if they have the habit of smoking. If employees smoke, no matter how little or much, they must quit. In the hospital, if employees are found smoking, they will be fired immediately.
For over 10 years, Quang Ngai Province Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital, one of the typical medical facilities, has strictly implemented the no-smoking regulation in the hospital.
No smoking signs are posted in many locations within the Provincial Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital. Since its official opening, the hospital has been a pioneer in building a smoke-free hospital environment. The corridors of departments, rooms and wards are always clean and smoke-free. Every person who comes to see a doctor, receive treatment and take care of a patient must strictly follow this regulation, ensuring a safe environment for the health of everyone and the patient.
Speaking to reporters, Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Anh (in Hanh Thuan commune, Nghia Hanh district, Quang Ngai province) said: "The hospital does not allow smoking, so relatives and caregivers do not smoke in the hospital environment. I feel very secure about this."
After 7 years of launching the campaign to build a smoke-free environment, up to now, the Provincial Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital has no doctors or medical staff who smoke. Patients' relatives are also informed and advised not to smoke when coming to take care of patients, and to comply with the provisions of the Law on Prevention and Control of Tobacco Harms.
Sharing with reporters, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thu Hoa - Nurse at the Provincial Maternity and Pediatrics Hospital - confided: "Every day when cleaning the hospital room, we always remind the patient's family members not to smoke in the hospital grounds. The regulations of the hospital and the departments and rooms are that smoking is not allowed to ensure the health of the patients."
Speaking to reporters, Dr. Nguyen Thi Thuy Giang - Department of Pediatrics, Quang Ngai Province Obstetrics and Pediatrics Hospital - shared: "Children are often exposed to tobacco passively, that is, because their caregivers and people around them smoke. This increases the risk of respiratory diseases such as upper respiratory tract infections, pneumonia, or cardiovascular diseases, asthma, making children susceptible to illness and prolonging the treatment time."
The hospital's Tobacco Harm Prevention Steering Committee is established and strengthened annually. Promote propaganda about the harmful effects of tobacco to all staff, doctors, employees as well as patients' relatives in the hospital to change awareness and behavior. In particular, leaders, officials and employees always set an example by not smoking in the hospital environment. Violations of regulations on tobacco harm prevention are considered violations of the unit's rules and regulations.
