Hospital smoking ban extends to smelling like smoke

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Officials at the University of Missouri Health Care have announced a new policy to prohibit smoking on all property owned by its hospitals.

The ban announced Saturday includes all outdoor areas, including vehicles parked on hospital property. And beginning Sept. 1, MU Health employees can even be reprimanded for smelling like tobacco smoke.

"What, are they going to be policing Highway 63 now?" asked Deborah Rountree, a nurse in University Hospital's burn unit. "Can I not have a cigarette on the way to work?"

But Laura Schopp, wellness coordinator for MU Health, defended the measure.

"We have people with respiratory illnesses in here and people in the hospital who are trying to quit themselves, and for some people, the smell of smoke is a trigger for cravings," she said.

"We think it's good patient care to be smoke free, just as we encourage employees to wear scent-free products."

MU Health includes University Hospital, Columbia Regional Hospital and Ellis Fischel Cancer Center, as well as several clinics. Administrators said the bans are meant to promote healthy lifestyles for their employees and set a good example for patients and visitors.

Although the hospitals have voluntarily initiated the bans, a proposal moving through the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services would require all hospitals in the state, except Veterans Affairs and psychiatric hospitals, to be smoke free by July 2007.

Schopp said thankful e-mails were pouring into her office. "The overwhelming response to our new policy has been very favorable," she said. "It's just the right thing to do for our patients."

Darryl Cutts, who works in housekeeping, said he'll follow the rules but believes they're unfair. "I don't think you should be told what to do on your break, let alone your lunch," said Cutts, 51.

"I'll try to quit for eight hours a day," he said. "Seriously, I don't know if I'm ready to quit. And being told you have to do this, that doesn't motivate me."