What Are the Perceptions, Experiences, and Behaviors of Health Care Providers After Implementation of a Comprehensive Smoke-Free Hospital Policy?

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the perceptions, experiences, and behaviors of health care providers (HCPs) after the implementation of a comprehensive smoke-free policy. This qualitative descriptive study, using semi-structured interviews, was conducted with 28 HCPs working in a Canadian hospital. Four overarching themes emerged from the analysis including (a) greater support for tobacco reduction, (b) enhanced patient care and interactions, (c) improved staff morale, and (d) some barriers still exist. The main findings suggest a comprehensive smoke-free hospital environment can strengthen the tobacco-free workplace culture within a hospital setting among HCPs where support for tobacco reduction is amplified, patient care and interactions regarding tobacco dependence are improved, and staff morale is enhanced. While there are still some challenging barriers as well as opportunities for improvements, the implementation of a comprehensive smoke-free policy heightened the call-to-action among HCPs to take a more active role in tobacco reduction.