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Area Hospitals to Announce Plans for Tobacco Free Campuses
January 14, 2009
Midland Memorial Hospital, Odessa Regional Medical Center, and Medical Center Hospital are proud to partner together to promote a healthier lifestyle by adopting a “Tobacco Free” policy on all three campuses. The hospitals will make their announcement at a joint press conference on Wednesday, January 14th at 3 p.m.
As a part of this initiative, all three hospitals will ban the use of any tobacco product on their properties starting July 1st, 2009. This will include private offices that are leased and/or owned by each of the individual hospitals. These new policies will apply to all employees, physicians, patients and visitors of each facility.
We realize that the transition to become “Tobacco Free” campuses will take some time to embrace as we move toward our goal of providing a healthy environment for everyone. As a result, the new policy implementation is being coordinated by the hospitals with the assistance of the American Cancer Society. Plans include providing assistance to hospital employees and others who seek help with tobacco cessation programs.
As healthcare facilities, it is difficult to ignore the devastating impact that tobacco use of any kind can have on one’s health. According to the American Cancer Society, smoking is responsible for nearly 1 in 5 deaths in the United States. Thousands more suffer from tobacco related ailments, including cancer, heart disease, and high blood pressure.
Because cigarette smoking and tobacco use are acquired behaviors, smoking is the most preventable cause of premature death in our society. Odessa Regional Medical Center, Midland Memorial Hospital and Medical Center Hospital are all committed to improving the health of our communities through this initiative.
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