Profession
45% of U.S. hospitals ban smoking
NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Aug. 31, 2009
Another 15% of the 1,900 hospitals surveyed by the Joint Commission said they were developing no-smoking-anywhere policies, and the study predicts that a majority of hospitals will have such rules in place by the end of the year. The commission requires that hospitals ban smoking indoors.
The study found no relationship between hospitals that adopted broader smoking bans and superior performance in offering smoking cessation counseling to patients. Nearly half a million Americans die each year from causes related to cigarette smoking, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2009/08/31/prbf0831.htm.
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