Advertisement

Blanket smoking ban across Canberra's major hospitals

New rules that ban smoking in the grounds of all Canberra's major hospitals have come into force.

From today the Canberra and Calvary Hospital campuses, as well as National Capital Private Hospital and John James Hospital are all covered by the smoking ban.

All remaining "designated smoking areas" at the hospitals have been removed and measures put in place to help patients who are addicted to nicotine.

The Health Directorate said the smoking ban was the final step in removing the health risks of exposure to tobacco smoke for all those using health services in Canberra.

Calvary Hospital's director of people and cultures Dr Michelle Austin told 666 ABC Canberra that hospitals would provide a range of nicotine replacement therapy (NRP) for patients.

"We will be making sure that they either reduce or eliminate cravings while they are a patient with us," she said.

However hospital visitors and staff will have to wait until they are off hospital property, before they can light up.

"Visitors will have to simply refrain and we hope that because they're not generally at the hospital for days and days at a time like our patients, that they will be ok with that," Dr Austin said.

Doctors and nurses also hoping to quit

Many doctors and nurses have made the decision to use the ban as an incentive to quit smoking, Dr Austin said.

"We've heard some really heartening stories about some of our staff who have been smokers who are really going to try and take this as a great opportunity to quit smoking. Also if they choose tom they can use NRT during he day... so they have some options available to them," she said.

She said while the policy was being rolled out, people would be "gently encouraged" to refrain from smoking on hospital grounds.

"We don't want to take a militant approach to it at this point," she said. "In the first instance we'll be speaking with smoker and asking them to refrain," Dr Austin said.

The ACT Nurses Federation is supportive of the move, but did raise concerns about how the policy would affect involuntary mental health patients during the consultation process for the changes.

"If somebody is mentally ill it may not be the best time in which to enforce a smoke-free environment," federation secretary Jenny Miragaya said.

"We have been assured that there will be very substantial nicotine replacement therapy available for people who were in that environment."