Piedmont Hospital to become smoke-free campus

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Piedmont AtlantaHospital soon will be a tobacco and smoke-free campus with the expansion of thehospital’s policy on Jan. 1, making use of any tobacco products outside onhospital grounds prohibited.

The announcement wasmade Thursday in honor of the 37^th annual American CancerSociety’s Great American Smokeout and in support of the City of Atlanta andFulton County’s recent efforts to be a healthier community.
Piedmont Atlanta’s newpolicy, which applies to all employees, physicians, patients, visitors,volunteers, contractors and vendors, is an expansion of the existing policywhich prohibits the use of tobacco in all buildings. Under the new policy,smoking will be prohibited near all entrances and on hospital walkways,grounds, parking lots and in any vehicles parked on Piedmont Atlanta Hospitalproperty.
“Years of researchhave shown us how dangerous the effects of smoking are to one’s health,” saidMark Cohen, M.D., vice president of medical affairs and chief quality officerat Piedmont Atlanta Hospital. “As a community hospital, it is our job not onlyto restore the health of patients who come to us for help but to protect themfrom things that are harmful to their health like secondhand smoke.
 “We certainlyrecognize that people have the right to choose to continue smoking, despite allthe health risks the habit poses to one’s health,” said Dr. Cohen. “We just askthey not smoke while on our campus. If they’re interested in breaking thehabit, there are plenty of resources out there that can help.”
Tobacco use remainsthe single largest preventable cause of disease and premature death in the U.S.Yet about 43.8 million Americans still smoke cigarettes, according to theAmerican Cancer Society –nearly one in every five adults. 
 “We feel that this is a positive step in thatthe citizens who seek quality health care delivery will not have their healthoutcomes placed in jeopardy due to the effects second-hand smoke,” said KenLazarus, co-chair of the Smoke Free Coalition of Fulton County. “We thankthe health system for taking this critical step to help increase the airquality in Fulton County.”
Smoke Free Coalitionof Fulton County, a locally-led grassroots coalition, is working to educate thecommunity about the dangers of secondhand smoke exposure and the benefits ofsmoke-free workplaces for Fulton County residents, workers, and visitors.