Smoking King's Mill Hospital staff warned

Sherwood Forest’s Hospitals Trust which operates the hospital on Mansfield Road, Sutton, and has a no smoking policy on its grounds has said if staff are caught smoking in uniform or on site it will “result in a formal investigation that could lead to formal disciplinary action”.

One director at the trust Tim Reddish said at a board of director meeting that the trust is “aware” of smoking at entrance four, a staff entrance in the hospital.

He said: “Whilst smoking on site is a challenge, progress is disappointing.”

He suggested that non-smoking signage at the main entrance should be replicated at all entrances.

The trust employs 4,500 people across three hospital sites - King’s Mill, Newark and Mansfield Community Hosptial.

A spokesperson for Sherwood Forest Hospitals said: “All of Sherwood Forest’s Hospitals sites are smoke-free, although we recognise that some individuals continue to choose to smoke on our premises and we continue to look at ways of addressing this issue, including through signposting patients to services to help them stop.

“We are clear in relation to staff that smoking is not permitted on site, or while in uniform. Instances of this policy not being followed are rare, however, any witnessed or reported breaches of these policies could lead to disciplinary action.

“All staff were reminded of this policy recently.

“Our staff are also entitled to get support to help them stop smoking, and we encourage anyone wanting help to talk to their line manager.”

John MacDonald, chairman of the board of directors said: “It is important that the trust is encouraging and supporting people to stop smoking as well as enforcing the policy.”

The trust has said that enforcing a non-smoking policy with patients and visitors is ‘more challenging’ than staff enforcement.

The trust has said there is a ‘particular problem’ with smoking at the hospital’s main entrance.

To tackle this signage has been ‘changed to make it clear that smoking on hospital grounds is socially unacceptable.’

The trust also noted that smoking consistently appears in complaints from both patients and staff.

Graham Ward another director said that the main issue was smoking at entrances which is usually resolved by erecting a smoking shelter could be “perceived to encourage smoking at the hospital”.