Posted By Robert K Lewis
This can be a trickey one but it does remind me of a Drs practice on whose panel I was was found. The Senior partner was approached through a fog of cigarette smoke, of 1950s London proportions, for a consultation. The thoughtful among you would say go to the other partners. One was a chain cigar smoker and the other a continuous pipe puffer. - Birds of a feather comes to mind nowadays. There are only two options really

a) Make treatment conditional on clean air at the outset of treatment
or
b) Ask the last remaining smokers on staff if they are prepared to do the visit.

As a reformed smoker I am very aware now of the effect I had on others - sometimes smokers are not aware of the problems they are causing. I wou8ld not advocate any policy which required non-smoking staff to enter such a place. The other problem is that the odour clings and is taken on to the next patient who may be a non-smoker or allergic to the odour.

Bob

Posted By Linda Westrupp
Jayne
This is a really difficult issue, particularly as our staff do not like to refuse care and in some cases cannot refuse care. However, the following approach has been found to work.
Step 1 - explain to the patient that they are putting staff at risk and making it difficult for them to treat the healthcare problem. Ask if they would be willing to not smoke for an hour or two before the visit and to ventilate the room in which treatment is to take place.
Step 2 - talk to the carers/family and explain the problem. Ask if it is possible for the patient to be brought in to the clinic/health centre.
Step 3 - issue staff with a suitable face mask to filter the particulates - this often makes the patient co-operative on ventilation and refraining from smoking during a visit.
Step 4 - threaten to withdraw service (not possible in some cases due to statutory duties), but only do this if your organisation is prepared to back it up - this often takes up to 6 months of letters, senior manager visits etc. but can be done and in some cases in some areas has been.

The last option is extremely difficult for healthcare professionals to come to terms with but should remain an option.
Good Luck
Linda

Posted By Geoff Burt
Bob

I'm not thinking anything at the moment - I've just learnt that the odour of smoking (the smell, not the smoke) on peoples clothes can trigger allergies. All I have asked is how these allergies manifest themself.

Do you have any cases or references I could look at? It is not something I knew of before or had even thought about.

Geoff

Posted By Geoff Burt
Tried to do a bit of research on this ref allergies to smells but I'm not getting very far.

There is an interesting one though on Google.

Some chap thought he was allergic to the smell of old Steinway pianos. It turned out he was allergic to the mould that grows in old pianos!

I never got past the Blue Danube myself.

Posted By Geoff Burt
So, to be pedantic, it's not the smell people might be allergic to, but the presence of matter indicated by the smell!