NHS Grampian: full retreat from hospital smoking ban

An unexpected pleasure to read NHS Grampian's new view of the smoking restrictions proposed last summer. Not to put too fine a point on it, the smoking ban 'would cause huge problems', according to medical director Dr Roelf Dijkhuisen. In a revolutionary statement that health boards up and down the country should note, Dr Dijkhuisen said, 'patients addicted to smoking could not be expected to “take their drip and go and stand at the bus station” to have a cigarette'.

Quite obviously this is an absurd requirement in an institution designed to improve people's health.

Nor does Dr Dijkhuisen approve of the solution reported in the Press and Journal just days ago.

"I’m not a fan of shelters. They are ugly bus stops and extremely expensive. Maybe we will designate an area where we will have to do no building work. Rather than spending £150,000, we should look at alternative ways of providing designated areas without forcing people to stand in the rain."

It remains to be seen what the Trust will propose as a solution, but it would seem that Dr Dijkhuisen's recommendations are intended to be a permanent solution, rather than a sticking-plaster job pending a total ban in a few years' time.  He is not the only board member who doesn't see the need for a complete ban in the foreseeable future:

Yesterday members welcomed the medical director’s recommendations – which included improving employees’ knowledge of the locations of smoking areas and clearer signs – but chief executive Richard Carey said it was important to remember this was not ideal and that a ban should still be a target.

Chairman Dr David Cameron disagreed, saying while the “aspiration” was for premises to be smoke-free, the board’s role was to “encourage people not to smoke rather than ban them”.

Does this sensible qualification from Dr Cameron mean that we have started to retreat from the ideal of a smoke-free Scotland? Surely no Scottish government would now legislate to make smoking on NHS premises a crime, as they seem to want to do in Wales? Some of ASH Scotland's ambitions as laid out in their recent (Cancer Research UK-funded) report Beyond Smoke-free also seem unrealisable.

We must ensure that all Scottish health and education services have smoke-free grounds.

A permanent solution, accommodating smokers in comfortable indoor accommodation that will entice them away from the doorways, will only be possible when the law is changed.