Rotorua Hospital no-smoking policy being ignored

People have been seen lighting up on the grounds of Rotorua Hospital despite its smoke-free policy and "no smoking" signs.
The Auckland District Health Board this week announced "frequent flouting" of its smoke-free policy meant it was considering refusing to hire smokers. Lakes District Health Board, which operates Rotorua and Taupo's hospitals, has a smoke-free policy on its grounds and in its vehicles but a visit to Rotorua Hospital campus by The Daily Post revealed people are ignoring the policy.
"Lakes DHB sites and grounds are smoke-free at all times," Lakes District Health Board communications officer Sue Wilkie said.
"DHB employees, patients, visitors or contractors are not allowed to smoke on-site in any of Lakes DHB facilities, grounds or vehicles." However, The Daily Post saw three people smoking outside the emergency department within 30 minutes yesterday afternoon.
Miss Wilkie could not be reached for comment about people being seen smoking on the hospital grounds yesterday but said a smoke-free team monitored the grounds and staff also reported smokers. Non-compliance with the policy resulted in disciplinary action. She did not elaborate on what action was taken.
The Lakes DHB's smoke-free policy is due for review in February next year, and Miss Wilkie said the employment of staff who smoked was likely to be looked at then.
The five Midland DHBs agreed that they needed to do more to address the issue of smoking and were working together to have a smoke-free Midland by 2020 and a smoke-free DHB workforce by 2015, she said.
Lakes DHB offered free nicotine replacement therapy to employees to help them not smoke at work and as health professionals, employees had a key role in giving smokers advice and support to quit.
The issue with employees smoking was raised with the Auckland DHB, by the executive director of nursing Taima Campbell, after the frustrated father of a sick child objected to her having to inhale second-hand smoke outside Starship children's hospital.
Miss Wilkie said patients at Rotorua Hospital had also complained about nurses smelling like cigarette smoke.
Part of the smoke-free policy required staff who wanted to smoke to do so off the grounds of the Lakes DHB site, and they were not to be wearing any Lakes DHB identification or uniform. She said cigarette smoke on a uniform while nursing babies was considered third-hand smoke, which could be harmful.
Meanwhile, Rotorua District Council parks and recreation manager Garry Page said the council's smoke-free outdoor public spaces policy had been successful since its introduction in 2008.
All 76 playgrounds in Rotorua and the council-owned area of the Whakarewarewa Forest are smoke-free areas. On July 1 this year the council extended the policy to include the outside areas and carparks at the Aquatic Centre.
Four months after the policy came into effect a council survey showed 93 per cent of people supported it, and that there had been a significant reduction in the number of cigarette butts found in the smoke-free areas.
Mr Page said if the opportunity arose, the council would look at extending the policy to include other areas.
At the time of the 2006 census, there were 21,000 smokers in the Lakes DHB area, which includes Rotorua, Taupo and Turangi.
Nationally the Government is trying to reduce smoking figures and passed a law this week requiring tobacco products and advertisements to be kept out of sight in shops.
According to figures released by the Ministry of Health, an estimated 5000 people in the country die every year from the effects of smoking, including more than 300 from exposure to secondhand smoke.
Additional reporting by APN News & Media