NHS hospitals have been criticised for refusing to allow smokers to light up on the premises. In letter sent to the BMJ, Dr Stephen Head said forcing people out of smoking rooms and onto the street was adding to the suffering of terminally-ill patients and their relatives.

Opinions please... :?

Originally posted by geoffbowen
NHS hospitals have been criticised for refusing to allow smokers to light up on the premises. In letter sent to the BMJ, Dr Stephen Head said forcing people out of smoking rooms and onto the street was adding to the suffering of terminally-ill patients and their relatives.

Opinions please... :?


Awww...are the smokers worried they're gonna catch a cold when they light up outside?

Can I vent my spleen at smoking? I can? Thanks!

As the cigarette executives said 'We reserve the right to smoke for the young, the poor ... and the stupid'

I'm stunned that people still 'choose' to smoke, despite well publicised evidence of the diseases it causes.

What did these smokers expect when they light up on NHS premises? For non-smokers to wait outside while smokers drag away in the foyer? I'm sure some of them would like that.

Well let them. They'll all be dead shortly.

Originally posted by Abby
Well let them. They'll all be dead shortly.The logical position for the government would be to encourage smoking.

A diagnosis of lung cancer often means 3-6 months left, little point in much treatment or medication beyond morphine (which is very cheap, Oramorph about £20 a litre, strongest MST 200mg tab for about £1.50 ). NHS tries to opt out of terminal care anyway, send them home to die - or to a charity funded hospice. Mor interventionist treatment comes at the cost of nasty side effects and seldom changes the outcome anyway. You are probably towards the end of the tax generating stage of your life and probably towards the lower end of the socio-economic scale (so not a great tax generator anyway) and probably not paying for private medical insurance. Soon you're going to start wanting a pension and more medical care as you age.
The problem is that low tar ciggies do reduce the lung cancer risk and can lead instead to more expensive illnesses - like circulatory problems leading to a need to amputate the extremities - like legs.

So let's have a campaign to solve the pension crisis - bring back the high tar, no filter ciggies. Join CamFag, the campaign for real ciggies, today! Reduce the tobacco tax: smokers are the heroes of our economy, sacrificing themselves to save the state billions of expenditure on pensions and medical care.

Last time I had my statutory 4 hour wait in A&E the "no smoking" notices were blatantly disregarded. Anyone who was brave/stupid enough to challenge the lads in question (who had been cutting each other up with broken beer glasses) would have probably ended up needing more A&E attention than originally planned. Actually it wasn't just tobacco being smoked, there were "herbal additives" mixed in (probably a good thing as cannabis tends to reduce aggression).

When my lad needed a major operation in the Children's hospital we had the offer of staying overnight in a "parents room". We were in two minds but checked it out. The ingrained stench of stale smoke even with the windows wide open was such that no way would we stay, even if it meant paying to be in an hotel nearby.

Many hospitals in Greater Manchester have 'smoking shelters' - nothing more than an enclosed glass shelter where smokers can go.

It's a good idea because it means those who cannot live without a fag can kill themselves without blocking the entrance and blowing second hand smoke into those of us who have the brains not to indulge in a vile habit.

The worst sight I ever saw re smoking at a hospital was when I went in to have my second child. There were women stood outside at varying stages of pregnancy puffing away like chimneys. They were all in their nighties of course and one had even pushed her drip outside with her....how gross

On a similar note to Mo, I despair when I see a mother / father with a baby in one hand and a lit cigarette in another

Smoking should be a definate no no, especially in hospitals, It amazes me to see people destroying their own and other people health, as everyone knows the dangers from smoking.

Some years ago, my niece was laid in St. Lukes, dying from cancer and I saw the nurses sat in their snack bar inside the hospital puffing away, so all I can think of is that they must have a death wish.

But it is not just death but all the suffering associated with death from smoking, gasping for breath, terrible pain, having your limbs amputated because smoking causes circulatory problems.

What's the point of posting when moderators either edit what you've typed, change your thread titles or just delete your posts?

How could allowing ill people to deliberately make themselves even more ill, possibly be thought of as a good idea?

I suggest that anyone being treated in hospital should not only be barred from smoking on the grounds, but forbidden to go OUT of the grounds for a fag either. You want to ruin your own health, stop expecting the taxpayer to try and restore it for you.

It's sad to see the ill forced out on the street outside Sheffield hospitals.


Good job that it's never once happened in the entire history of Sheffield hospitals, then. Nobody forces ill people to go outside and smoke. They choose to.

It sounds sick (no pun intended), but it always amuses me to see patients huddled up, with their portable drips, gowns and even some in wheelchairs puffing away outside the hospital. There was a case at Doncaster Hospital a few years back in which a patient died as a result from going out to have a fag. He had some sort of skin condition which resulted in him being covered in some sort of petroleum jelly as the treatment and apparently he went outside to light up and literally lit up :P

As far as I know the only reason for patients to go outside and smoke is because they decline the nicotine replacement therapy available to them whilst in hospital and choose to do it.

I'm always amazed at the number of people prepared to come out from chemo sessions and the like to have a smoke outside the Weston Park when I'm there. Before anybody mentions it, yes, I was a smoker and gave up. I'm not an evangelical anti-smoker, but smoke makes my asthma really bad so I don't want to share anyone else's smoke thank you.

What's the point of posting when moderators either edit what you've typed, change your thread titles or just delete your posts?

Well can we stick to the point of this thread rather than slamming everyone who smokes?

The NHS should provide an area outside which is isolated from non-smokers, where people can go and have a cigarette during what will most likely be stressful times.

Lets not blow this out of proportion, it's a simple solution in which everyone wins.

I also don't understand why there's such an uproar by non-smokers when the subject of designated smoking areas is discussed. As long as non-smokers are kept away from passive smoking then I really don't understand the issue.

After re-reading the original post because I got all excited and jumped to the Quick Reply section - I don't think that there should be a smoking area inside a hospital because it's contradictory to the government's recent legislation. As long as there's an area outside which is sheltered and easily accessed then everyone wins.

What's the point of posting when moderators either edit what you've typed, change your thread titles or just delete your posts?

The logical position for the government would be to encourage smoking.

A diagnosis of lung cancer often means 3-6 months left, little point in much treatment or medication beyond morphine (which is very cheap, Oramorph about £20 a litre, strongest MST 200mg tab for about £1.50 ). NHS tries to opt out of terminal care anyway, send them home to die - or to a charity funded hospice. Mor interventionist treatment comes at the cost of nasty side effects and seldom changes the outcome anyway. You are probably towards the end of the tax generating stage of your life and probably towards the lower end of the socio-economic scale (so not a great tax generator anyway) and probably not paying for private medical insurance. Soon you're going to start wanting a pension and more medical care as you age.
The problem is that low tar ciggies do reduce the lung cancer risk and can lead instead to more expensive illnesses - like circulatory problems leading to a need to amputate the extremities - like legs.

So let's have a campaign to solve the pension crisis - bring back the high tar, no filter ciggies. Join CamFag, the campaign for real ciggies, today! Reduce the tobacco tax: smokers are the heroes of our economy, sacrificing themselves to save the state billions of expenditure on pensions and medical care.

Last time I had my statutory 4 hour wait in A&E the "no smoking" notices were blatantly disregarded. Anyone who was brave/stupid enough to challenge the lads in question (who had been cutting each other up with broken beer glasses) would have probably ended up needing more A&E attention than originally planned. Actually it wasn't just tobacco being smoked, there were "herbal additives" mixed in (probably a good thing as cannabis tends to reduce aggression).

When my lad needed a major operation in the Children's hospital we had the offer of staying overnight in a "parents room". We were in two minds but checked it out. The ingrained stench of stale smoke even with the windows wide open was such that no way would we stay, even if it meant paying to be in an hotel nearby.


actually, if you get lung cancer from smoking with no other problems you are pritty lucky. more people would die from lung cancer from smoking if they could live long enough to get it. you are much more than likely to die from a circulatory condition from smoking such as a heart attack, stroke or buerger’s disease than you are lung cancer. then there are chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. and not forgetting all the other cancers like kidney, bladder, pancreas and stomach or mouth, lip, tongue, larynx, pharynx, and esophagus. all theses problems & many many more, they are just the tip of the ice burg, can cause pain & suffereing to the smoker & cost the NHS millions to treat year after year.

my partners granddad smoked. he pratically brought my OH up & they had a very special bond, it was great to watch them together. about 4 years ago he had to have one of his legs amputated. he had an ulcer on his leg from smoking & they had operated on it numerous times doing bypasses & such like to no avail. they had to amputate his leg, once below the knee & then above it due to infection. all this cost money as well as all the after care, artificial legs & stuff.

then he got small cell lung cancer. he started chemo treatment & was doing well untill he got a kidney infection & due to the chemo his body couldnt fight it.

i'm really ashamed to say i smoked. even when my partners granddad was lying on his death bed from smoking & i walked off every half an hour or so with my mother-in-law, left his side to go & smoke. i stood outside DRI in the middle of the night puffing away to feed an addiction that someone i loved was diying for. its selfish & i am so so ashamed of myself for it. all smokers are selfish, all they care about is their horrible horrible addiction.

i'm so glad i gave up i'm just truley sorry that a loved one had to die for me to do it.

Well can we stick to the point of this thread rather than slamming everyone who smokes?


That pretty much is the point; people who not only prefer to make themselves even more ill than they already are, but expect the NHS to spend money on letting them do so in comfort. Slamming is about the only logical response to such a patently asinine suggestion.

That pretty much is the point; people who not only prefer to make themselves even more ill than they already are, but expect the NHS to spend money on letting them do so in comfort. Slamming is about the only logical response to such a patently asinine suggestion.

In all due respect, in this circumstance it's not the smokers who are rallying for smoking rooms to be reintroduced, but instead it is a Doctor who is calling for the change.

I understand the need for the smoking ban, and although I believe it could have been done in better ways I agree that it's better for the community as a whole. Having a smoking room in a hospital is pretty pointless when you can simply have a shletered area outside in which to smoke.

Oh, and without getting into the semantics, smokers raise more revenue than the effects of smoking cost the government.

actually, if you get lung cancer from smoking with no other problems you are pritty lucky. more people would die from lung cancer from smoking if they could live long enough to get it. you are much more than likely to die from a circulatory condition from smoking such as a heart attack, stroke or buerger’s disease than you are lung cancer. then there are chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases (COPD), such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. and not forgetting all the other cancers like kidney, bladder, pancreas and stomach or mouth, lip, tongue, larynx, pharynx, and esophagus. all theses problems & many many more, they are just the tip of the ice burg, can cause pain & suffereing to the smoker & cost the NHS millions to treat year after year.

my partners granddad smoked. he pratically brought my OH up & they had a very special bond, it was great to watch them together. about 4 years ago he had to have one of his legs amputated. he had an ulcer on his leg from smoking & they had operated on it numerous times doing bypasses & such like to no avail. they had to amputate his leg, once below the knee & then above it due to infection. all this cost money as well as all the after care, artificial legs & stuff.

then he got small cell lung cancer. he started chemo treatment & was doing well untill he got a kidney infection & due to the chemo his body couldnt fight it.

i'm really ashamed to say i smoked. even when my partners granddad was lying on his death bed from smoking & i walked off every half an hour or so with my mother-in-law, left his side to go & smoke. i stood outside DRI in the middle of the night puffing away to feed an addiction that someone i loved was diying for. its selfish & i am so so ashamed of myself for it. all smokers are selfish, all they care about is their horrible horrible addiction.

i'm so glad i gave up i'm just truley sorry that a loved one had to die for me to do it.
My bold

Well, we do occasionally beat up little old ladies and strangle puppies and kittens, as well :loopy:

But back on topic. Yes, there should be smoking shelters outside hospital buildings (and preferably not plonked right next to the entrance). People (like me) who smoke are addicted to nicotine, and we'll need to have a ciggie, come hell or high water.

Patients might have the option of nicotine replacement, but visitors don't. And before somebody pipes up with, "Surely you can refrain from smoking for a couple of hours", the last time I was visiting from 8.30 at night until gone 9 the next morning - and, yes, I did go outside for a couple of ciggies, because I bleddy well needed them. And a couple of patches or nicotine chewing gum would not have been an acceptable substitute.

all smokers are selfish, all they care about is their horrible horrible addiction.

Yup, I don't care about my family, friends or anything else for that matter. All I do care about is getting my next nicotine fix.

I understand you have emotional experiences with smoking, but it's a personal choice of mine and it doesn't make me selfish in any way whatsoever.

Yup, I don't care about my family, friends or anything else for that matter. All I do care about is getting my next nicotine fix.

I understand you have emotional experiences with smoking, but it's a personal choice of mine and it doesn't make me selfish in any way whatsoever.

if you did care about them you wouldnt smoke then would you. you'd be more bothered about spending more time with them than you would smoking.

i've been on both sides of the fence, i can see it from both angles & which ever way you look at it smoking is selfish.

if you did care about them you wouldnt smoke then would you. you'd be more bothered about spending more time with them than you would smoking.

i've been on both sides of the fence, i can see it from both angles & which ever way you look at it smoking is selfish.

Well I don't know about that, I have more chance of dying from other causes than I do from smoking.

I understand what you're saying but I do think it's the very extreme side of it - if it helped you quit smoking then fantastic, it's something I am aiming to do in the near future as I go to the gym more.

I do plenty of selfless things for me to consider myself unselfish, so I was a little offended by your generalisation of all smokers.

if you did care about them you wouldnt smoke then would you. you'd be more bothered about spending more time with them than you would smoking.

i've been on both sides of the fence, i can see it from both angles & which ever way you look at it smoking is selfish.I smoke, therefore have no sentiments towards any member of my family in any way. In fact, I am so selfish I would watch them starve as I feast on a massive banquet......... or something like that.

How could allowing ill people to deliberately make themselves even more ill, possibly be thought of as a good idea?

I suggest that anyone being treated in hospital should not only be barred from smoking on the grounds, but forbidden to go OUT of the grounds for a fag either. You want to ruin your own health, stop expecting the taxpayer to try and restore it for you.

What if you are a tax payer who enjoys a smoke ?????? :loopy:
Fool !

Surely allowing patients to smoke kinda goes against what hospitals are about. They are there to treat, cure and prolong life not promote unhealthy lifestyle choices which could possibly result in someone's premature death.

Surely allowing patients to smoke kinda goes against what hospitals are about. They are there to treat, cure and prolong life not promote unhealthy lifestyle choices which could possibly result in someone's premature death.Agreed.

At the end of the day, it's a civil right to smoke if you want to. But it's not a civil right to be provided extra comforts to partake in this activity by the very people attempting to repair your health.

if you did care about them you wouldnt smoke then would you. you'd be more bothered about spending more time with them than you would smoking.

i've been on both sides of the fence, i can see it from both angles & which ever way you look at it smoking is selfish.

So is drinking tea/coffee/wine/beer
So is eating too many Mac D's
So is being Obese
So is being thin
So is running across the road instead of using a crossing
So is letting dogs poo all over people's pathways
So is ............................
The list is huge

Perlease !!!!!!!!!!:loopy:

Surely allowing patients to smoke kinda goes against what hospitals are about. They are there to treat, cure and prolong life not promote unhealthy lifestyle choices which could possibly result in someone's premature death.

yes, the NHS has huge morals when it comes to promoting healthy lifestyles... like Burger Kings in some hospitals. Promoting obesity though, almost already a bigger killer than smoking, is fine. No, it's a witchhunt against smokers.

All they're doing is biting the hand that pays for it or rather one out-of-touch civil servant/politician has. That's all it takes now.

I smoke, therefore have no sentiments towards any member of my family in any way. In fact, I am so selfish I would watch them starve as I feast on a massive banquet......... or something like that.

Since I'm a totally selfish smoker, too, can I come and share your banquet - and bring along my friends and family so they can starve as well??

yes, the NHS has huge morals when it comes to promoting healthy lifestyles... like Burger Kings in some hospitals. Promoting obesity though, almost already a bigger killer than smoking, is fine. No, it's a witchhunt against smokers.

All they're doing is biting the hand that pays for it.

I have never seen a Burger King in a hospital. Merely nibbling the hand, I think you might find ;)

Surely allowing patients to smoke kinda goes against what hospitals are about. They are there to treat, cure and prolong life not promote unhealthy lifestyle choices which could possibly result in someone's premature death.

So, if hospitals are not supposed to promote unhealthy lifestyle choices, why don't they ban the shops that sell sweets and chocolate, and the canteens that provide burgers and chips, and the ladies from the WVS who actually go round the wards with trolleys full of unhealthy chocs and goodies, so that even bed-bound patients can get their fix of calories?

Since I'm a totally selfish smoker, too, can I come and share your banquet - and bring along my friends and family so they can starve as well??I know. We shall take our banquet to Uganda, where we may eat in view of the starving masses, just to re-itterate to the world how selfish smoking makes us!!

......or not, as the case may be. :loopy:

:hihi:So, if hospitals are not supposed to promote unhealthy lifestyle choices, why don't they ban the shops that sell sweets and chocolate, and the canteens that provide burgers and chips, and the ladies from the WVS who actually go round the wards with trolleys full of unhealthy chocs and goodies, so that even bed-bound patients can get their fix of calories?

:hihi::hihi:Love it

So, if hospitals are not supposed to promote unhealthy lifestyle choices, why don't they ban the shops that sell sweets and chocolate, and the canteens that provide burgers and chips, and the ladies from the WVS who actually go round the wards with trolleys full of unhealthy chocs and goodies, so that even bed-bound patients can get their fix of calories?

Why do you think?

I have never seen a Burger King in a hospital. Merely nibbling the hand, I think you might find ;)

Okay, there's only 6 Burger Kings in hospitals but loads of cash-strapped cafes have been shut by trusts and been replaced by other burger bars and Costa Coffees and the like.

The morals of the NHS/government to promoting healthy lifestyles:

McDonalds are nationwide in hospitals in the U.S. so it's only a matter of time here. They're getting their foot in the door.

At Raigmore hospital, Inverness in 2006 children going into surgery were given a McDonalds voucher.

Radio Heartbeat, Monklands Hospital was saved in 2006 after a four figure sum from McDonalds.

There's 12 Ronald McDonald childrens Houses in hospitals and 26 sets of Ronald McDonald family rooms across the country.

On the 20th March it was announced by government companies such as McDonald's and Virgin will be allowed to sponsor wards.

Yet in Wales all food vending machines will be stripped of junk food....

Okay, there's only 6 Burger Kings in hospitals but loads of cash-strapped cafes have been shut by trusts and been replaced by other burger bars and Costa Coffees and the like.

The morals of the NHS/government to promoting healthy lifestyles:

McDonalds are nationwide in hospitals in the U.S. so it's only a matter of time here. They're getting their foot in the door.

At Raigmore hospital, Inverness in 2006 children going into surgery were given a McDonalds voucher.

Radio Heartbeat, Monklands Hospital was saved in 2006 after a four figure sum from McDonalds.

There's 12 Ronald McDonald childrens Houses in hospitals and 26 sets of Ronald McDonald family rooms across the country.

On the 20th March it was announced by government companies such as McDonald's and Virgin will be allowed to sponsor wards.

What NHS Trusts choose to allow on their premises is down to them. If they choose not to allow people to smoke then that is their choice. Get over it. Walk the extra distance and smoke on the street if you feel that you need to smoke so much :thumbsup:

What NHS Trusts choose to allow on their premises is down to them. If they choose not to allow people to smoke then that is their choice. Get over it. Walk the extra distance and smoke on the street if you feel that you need to smoke so much :thumbsup:

It wasn't trusts choice though on smoking. I'm sure plenty would not have wanted a blanket ban but they had no choice. It gets back to one out-of-touch civil servant/politican again.

I don't smoke. There's a nice pub across the street though from it, which would be worth the walk blue gown or not.