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Brian Rousseau
A comprehensive report on the contentious issue of
patients smoking outside Dunedin Hospital is expected to be
considered by the Otago District Health Board's hospital
advisory committee later this month.
At its December meeting, the board called for management to
give high priority to urgently finding a suitable place for
patients to smoke if they could not be dissuaded from
smoking.
A management call for a ban on smoking on footpaths around
the hospital, which was not favoured by board members, was
turned down by the Dunedin City Council recently.
Chief executive Brian Rousseau said his view had been that
creating a smoking room would be the answer, but clinical
feedback was that the smoking addiction should be dealt with
on the ward, as any other addiction would be addressed.
Staff were preparing a comprehensive paper on the issue, he
told the health board last week.
Board member and non-smoker Dr Malcolm Macpherson said
recently he was for 24 hours a Dunedin Hospital patient.
Every interaction he had with a medical professional involved
questions about smoking.
A young smoker in the next bed had decided to give up after
the constant questioning.
It was an effective way of dealing with it, he said.
Member Peter Barron said this would not overcome the total
impropriety of people, who were not having treatment for the
addiction, smoking at hospital entrances in poor weather.
It was a question of humanity, he said.
Board member Richard Thomson said he hoped the key words in
the December resolution would not be ignored in any
recommendation from staff.
All hospitals are expected to by July reach a target of
providing 80% of patients with advice and help to quit
smoking.
elspeth.mclean@odt.co.nz
