Smoke Free Site

Salisbury District Hospital is a smoke free site.

Patients, visitors, staff and contractors are not allowed to smoke on the hospital grounds. This includes buildings, on-site accommodation, walkways, doorways, Trust vehicles and private cars in the hospital car parks.

We also respectfully ask to not smoke when a member of staff visits your home as it is their working environment whilst on duty and should therefore be smoke free.

Please leave tobacco at home to reduce temptation to smoke on site. E-cigarettes and vaping is allowed on site outside in designated vaping shelters only.

Why is the hospital smoke free?

All NHS Trusts have been smoke free since January 1^st 2019. As healthcare providers we have a responsibility to promote healthy lifestyles, reduce smoking prevalence and protect everyone from the dangers of second hand smoke.

Quitting smoking is the single, most beneficial change to improve health.

We strongly recommend patients stop smoking before a planned admission, especially prior to surgery Click here to see our leaflet.We know that surgery is safer, recovery times are quicker, healing is better and complications fewer amongst non-smokers. Non-smokers have fewer and shorter admissions to hospital than smokers.

What support is available?

We aim to ask every patient about their smoking history to help care for you better. Please be honest. Many patients use their admission as an opportunity to stop smoking and improve their health and we can help you with this.

Please let us know at any point during your admission that you would like to stop smoking. We can put you in touch with the Stop Smoking Nurse and offer nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). If you have you own supply of NRT please use it but tell staff so that it can be prescribed and ordered to keep you well stocked.

Please be advised that the Stop Smoking Nurse is part-time and you may be discharged home before being seen. Therefore, it is important to seek support from your local community smoking service.

www.nhs.uk/smokefree/help-and-advice/local-support-services-helplines (post code checker)

https://www.wiltshire.gov.uk/public-health-stop-smoking (Wiltshire)

www.italk.org.uk (Hampshire)

www.livewelldorset.co.uk (Dorset)

Please click here to view our stop smoking poster

Quitting smoking is more successful when using a combination of NRT and support from a stop smoking advisor compared to one type or no support. There is a range of NRT available on the market which can help deal with cravings.

Patches are slow release providing a constant amount of nicotine each hour. They are easy to use and stick to the skin like a plaster. They are more effective when used with another quick acting NRT product. Quick acting products work within seconds and deal with the peaks in cravings. It is personal choice which one is used.

• mouth spray is sprayed into the side of the cheek
• nose spray is sprayed up into the nostril
• gum is chewed until peppery and hot then ‘parked’ in the space between the lip and gum where it is absorbed until the peppery taste has gone
• lozenges come in different sizes and flavours and dissolve in the mouth. They take about 20 minutes to dissolve
• nicotine inhalators are a small plastic device like a pen with a nicotine cartridge inside, which is inhaled when sucking on the inhalator. It provides ‘hand to mouth’ action but does not heat the nicotine or produce vapour making it discreet to use.

Advice for visitors.

Please don’t smoke when visiting friends or family and we ask that you don’t take patients outside to smoke. Please support and encourage your loved ones if they are trying to quit smoking as this support is very important.  

Advice for staff.

Occupational health will be able to provide advice and guidance to staff who want to use this as an opportunity to give up smoking.

Please contact sft.occupationalhealth@nhs.net

All staff can access support from the Wiltshire health trainers who attend the hospital and run clinics for staff. Please click here to fill out a referral form.