Saint Anne's Hospital
795 Middle Street, Fall River, MA 02721
508-674-5600
Saint Anne’s Hospital now 100% smoke- and tobacco-free
Friday, July 01, 2011
Policy eliminates use of all tobacco products at all Saint Anne’s sites and locations
Fall River, MA – Citing its commitment to maintaining an environment that minimizes health risks and supports health and wellness, Saint Anne’s Hospital has announced a new policy that eliminates all smoking and the use of all tobacco products inside and outside buildings on its main campus and all satellite sites and locations, effective July 1.
The process of becoming smoke-free
Launching in coordination with a statewide initiative by the
Massachusetts Hospital Association (MHA) and the Massachusetts
Department of Public Health (DPH), Saint Anne's smoke- and
tobacco-free policy is the culmina
|
| Click here to view our smoke- and tobacco-free policy. |
|
To get help with smoking cessation
|
In recent years, Saint Anne’s has progressively limited use of tobacco products on its properties. Currently, just two outdoor smoking areas currently remain on the perimeter of its main campus. In addition to elimination of those areas, the new policy prohibits all tobacco products on all properties in all locations owned or leased by the hospital, as well as inside cars parked on hospital properties. Products include cigarettes, cigars, and smokeless tobacco, as well as electronic cigarettes. The policy applies to all hospital staff, patients and visitors.
In announcing the new policy, Saint Anne’s Hospital President Craig A. Jesiolowski, FACHE, noted that the hospital’s policy is in concert with the Massachusetts Hospital Association’s statewide “Healing Inside and Out: Massachusetts Tobacco-Free Hospitals” initiative, announced earlier this year.
MHA’s initiative lays out a series of recommended steps, which the hospital has followed, said Jesiolowski.
Noting that it is “important to have input from a cross-section of constituents,” Jesiolowski explained that the hospital appointed a task force that has been meeting for several months. This group, consisting of representatives from the hospital’s senior management, administration, facilities, patient care services, human resources, medical staff, communications and community relations, and tobacco users, was charged with assessing existing tobacco/smoking policies and creating the tobacco-free policy. The team also has been responsible for developing internal and external communications, signage, and brochures and other collateral materials, as well as promoting local and online smoking cessation and support programs for patients, staff, and the community.
In the weeks leading up to July 1 implementation of the policy, hospital staff were trained to address the concerns of fellow employees, patients and visitors dependent on tobacco products.
They also have developed strategies for enforcing the policy and sharing information about free or low-cost resources, such as free on-line resources and Saint Anne’s smoking cessation programs.
The health and financial impacts of the new policy
Referring to DPH data, Alan
Harvey, MD, MBA, Saint Anne’s vice president for medical affairs,
said that more than 8,000 Massachusetts residents die each year from the
effects of smoking, and an estimated 1,000 or more Massachusetts adults
and children, who are not smokers themselves, die each year from the
effects of secondhand smoke. Locally, according to DPH statistics, the
overall rate of smoking in Bristol County – 20.4 percent – exceeds the
state rate of 15.8 percent.
“As a healthcare provider,” Dr. Harvey said, “we believe it is our responsibility to create an environment that minimizes health risk and supports behaviors that contribute to the optimal health and well-being of our employees, patients, their families and others who work in and visit hospital and all of our satellite locations. Together, we are joining this important effort to promote public health and encourage healthy living in our communities.”
Saint Anne’s President Jesiolowski also pointed out that, in addition to the primary goal of safeguarding community health, the hospital’s new policy is designed to help reduce the rate of smoking, as well as reduce the costs that tobacco-related products incur.
“In terms of deaths, health conditions, lost work days, and increases in insurance premiums, smoking is the number one preventable behavior that we can positively impact,” said Jesiolowski.
Jesiolowski noted that, while Saint Anne’s is the first area hospital to go completely tobacco-free, several other area organizations, including Bristol Community College, have already adopted tobacco-free policies. Similarly, the City of Fall River passed an ordinance earlier this year that prohibits the sale of tobacco-related products in city stores with pharmacies.
For more information about Saint Anne’s Hospital smoke- and tobacco-free policy, click here.
______________________________________________________________
How the use of tobacco products affects national and state health statistics
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)1, tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of disease, disability and death in the United States.
The CDC estimates that, of the approximately 46.6 million U.S. adults who smoke cigarettes, or use smokeless tobacco, cigars, and pipes, an estimated 443,000 people die prematurely each year from smoking or exposure to secondhand smoke, and another 8.6 million live with a serious illness caused by smoking. Together, they result in more than 164,000 cases of lung, larynx, esophageal, and oral cancers, 16,000 cases of stroke, 92,000 cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis), and more than 44,000 other diagnoses annually.
According to the Massachusetts Hospital Association, smoking costs Massachusetts an estimated $6.0 billion annually. Of this, $4.3 billion is due to excess direct health care costs; and $1.7 billion is from lost productivity due to premature death. Massachusetts also spends more than $10 million each day in direct medical costs related to smoking, and experiences $4 million each day in lost productivity due to premature death from smoking.
In other terms, each pack of cigarettes sold in Massachusetts costs the state an estimated $15.33 in direct health care costs and $6.08 in lost productivity.
Secondhand smoke has been proven to be a cause of cancer. It also can worsen symptoms of pulmonary conditions such as asthma or chronic bronchitis and can cause eye irritation and nausea, as well as other allergic symptoms in some. In fact, the U.S. Surgeon General2 issued a finding last December that “there is no safe level of exposure to tobacco smoke. Any exposure to tobacco smoke – even an occasional cigarette or exposure to secondhand smoke – is harmful.”
Sources:
1 http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/aag/osh.htm
2 http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/tobaccosmoke/factsheet.html
About Saint Anne's Hospital
Saint Anne’s Hospital is a community hospital with comprehensive inpatient, outpatient, and emergency care services, serving adults and children in southeastern Massachusetts and nearby Rhode Island. Founded in 1906 by the Dominican Sisters of the Presentation, Saint Anne's Hospital is a member of Steward Health Care, the second largest health care system in New England. Saint Anne’s specialized centers and services include Saint Anne’s Hospital Regional Cancer Care; the Robert F. Stoico/FIRSTFED Center for Breast Care; Caritas Diabetes Care Program; the Center for Pain Management; orthopedics; geriatric psychiatry; pediatrics (including inpatient care and specialty outpatient medical, behavioral and developmental care through the Fernandes Center for Children & Families); adult and pediatric rehabilitation; cardiovascular care; and primary care.
About Steward Health Care
Steward Health Care is the largest community-based accountable care organization and community hospital network in New England. Headquartered in Boston, Steward has more than 13,000 employees serving more than one million patients annually in 85 communities. Hospitals in the system include Saint Anne’s Hospital in Fall River, Holy Family Hospital in Methuen, St. Elizabeth’s Medical Center in Brighton, Norwood Hospital, Carney Hospital in Dorchester, Good Samaritan Medical Center in Brockton, Merrimack Valley Hospital in Haverhill, and Nashoba Valley Medical Center in Ayer. Other Steward Health Care entities include Steward Physician Network, Caritas Hospice and Home Care, Labouré College, and Por Cristo.
###
For more news from Saint Anne's Hospital, please visit Our News Room.
Copyright © 2012 Steward Health Care
Connect Healthcare Panacea CMS Solutions