NEWS
SMOKING RATES AT HOSPITALS IN IPSWICH AND
COLCHESTER ARE WAY DOWN – ALL THANKS TO THE
GROWING USE OF VAPING AREAS
BY LEO FORFAR
Vaping is saving lives wherever it can be found, but despite
never leaving the news cycle, we still haven’t seen vaping
reach its full potential in a healthcare environment. This is
especially perplexing in the UK, which stands as one of the
more vape-friendly countries in the developed world, home
to a competent and energised scene which has made big
strides to promote the activity.
A wonderful development in the ongoing story of vaping
in the UK comes to us courtesy of Ipswich and Colchester
hospital sites, which have seen their smoking rates fall
dramatically, aided by the introduction of some unique
vaping-only sites.
This brilliant new development comes as the culmination of
a long-term plan with some bumps in the road. The scheme
was launched just over a year ago. On March 8 2017, the
hospital group published a press release titled, “A breath of
fresh air,” which introduced a smoking ban and laid out its
plan for a change of attitudes about the activity.
It said, "We aim to promote and develop a culture between
staff, patients and visitors in which smoking is seen as
unacceptable and everyone respects this. Shifts in culture
and behaviours can take time and will not be achieved
simply by releasing policies and guidance. The required
culture change will be achieved if everybody commits to
tobacco-free becoming a reality and responds to situations
when this does not happen as an opportunity to engage."
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