NJ proposal to ban smoking at Psych Hospitals

[GroovyGwen]

v

[lost]

You can't smoke in the grounds? So long as cigarettes are legal to buy that offends me greatly, because I would just come out of hospital more stressed than I was before because I would have suddenly endured going into cold turkey on top of whatever mental crisis I were going through. Not being able to smoke on the wards would be too harsh. Within six hours withdrawal would be as much of a problem as any mental issues, and after 3 days (And the last time I was sectioned I couldn't go out for 2 weeks) I'd be very angry. So long as cigarettes can be bought by anyone who;s not a kid in any town pretty much anywhere in our respective countries I don't see why suddenly being put in hospital should carry the additional pain of going through unwanted and unprepared-for nicotine withdrawal.

Of course I'd love to give up cigarettes. Just I find it FUCKING hard.

[resonance]

I almost left a day program because the smoke off of peoples' clothes made me so migraneous and nauseated I was not able to tolerate being there. It would be worse now since my exercise asthma decided to also start being triggered by smoke over the last year or so.

We wound up having them sit on the opposite side of the room, which made me barely able to tolerate it, and made one of the smokers pissed off and resentful at me for days afterward because I was making her have to sit on the other side of the room from me.

This was at a hospital where patients were already forbidden to smoke on hospital grounds. The staff had elected not to enforce it. During the time I was there they started "enforcing" it by asking people to smoke only in cars in the parking lot. (Which meant that their clothes were even more saturated when they came back in - but it was an action the staff could take to make it seem like they weren't breaking hospital regs quite that badly.)

I don't know what people with smoke-triggered severe asthma and mental illness do when they need hospital treatment for the latter.

It's a difficult issue because when people go in-patient, a tobacco addiction is not generally their worst health problem. But letting smokers smoke is a major stressor for some people too, in addition to creating health problems (I'm not talking some possibility of lung cancer at some undefined future date, but a definite three-day migraine and difficulty breathing right now).

[Silver]

Alcohol is also legal to buy. However, it's not allowed for inpatient use. Somewhat spurious argument, as nicotine does have some cognitive benefits. On the other hand, there are many people who will report feeling ever so much better when drinking.

Many things are available OTC, and they aren't self-administered in the hospital.

Our local hospital did this 8-10 years ago. You got a choice when you went in - patch? or no patch? They're using lozenges now with much better results.

For them, it was initially a staffing issue. They did not have spare staff to monitor smokers, as our state legislature was just really getting into cutting budgets. Around that time they had also had a lighter that made it back indoors (fewer staff = poor sign-in/sign-out procedures for lighters, etc.) and was used to light bedding in one room. The medical director said, "No more." He also lined up staff ed re: dosage adjustment of various rx when cigarettes are stopped (such as Zyprexa.)

That hospital was the first smoke-free campus - no cigarettes from the sidewalk on in - in town. All three major facilities are like that now.

The quit-smoking rate increased modestly at the community mental health center and has stayed that way. Cigs are also about $6-7/pack here, which slowed smoking down quite a bit.

The assaults-on-staff rate increased modestly at the hospital for a year or so, then leveled out.

It pissed everyone off royally. It was probably the right thing to do, for the reasons Resonance lists.

[zsandoz]

of course i think people should be allowed to smoke (outside) when they're in the hospital. but, i was at a good ol' crazy hospital in NJ (i left just two weeks ago) and the only thing good about this hospital was that you could smoke (mostly) unsupervised, and that it was one of the last hospitals in NJ that this was the case. so, on the other hand, maybe banning smoking would help get rid of lousy hospitals like these. i mean, the only reason why people want to go is because they know they can smoke.

the last couple days i was there i actually quit smoking, because i felt like it was such a waste of time that i might as well get SOMETHING positive out of it.

this place was so bad (it's called the carrier clinic, no i dont recommend it)... the people who were involved in checking me in forgot to take my car keys away from me, i could've drove away anytime i wanted. heck, i couldve gone out and bought crack for the other patients during dinner time. (or gotten liquored up like silver mentioned)

[crazynotstupid]

I don't know what people with smoke-triggered severe asthma and mental illness do when they need hospital treatment for the latter.

I'd be rather willing to bet there's fairly less of these people than those, like me, with MI and diabetes.

In other words--no one gives a shit.

[resonance]

I don't know what people with smoke-triggered severe asthma and mental illness do when they need hospital treatment for the latter.

I'd be rather willing to bet there's fairly less of these people than those, like me, with MI and diabetes.

In other words--no one gives a shit.

Not clear on how the MI/diabetes issue relates to the MI/severe health issues triggered by smoke relates to no one giving a shit about people like me. Expand?

They actually did give a shit about me. The staff, anyway. They weren't that helpful but they did try to make accommodations.