A move to exempt some nursing home residents from the HSE’s smoke free campuses policy has been welcomed by Age Action.
The HSE confirmed earlier today that residents in both nursing homes and patients of public psychiatric facilities at all HSE sites in the Midlands will still be able to smoke on the premises.
However, the ban will still apply to staff and other patients.
In a statement this evening, Age Action said it was “satisfied that this flexible approach” had been adopted.
“There were good reasons why nursing homes and psychiatric facilities were exempt from the original smoking ban, and these reasons have not changed,” Head of Advocacy Eamon Timmins said.
"The benefits of forcing these older people to cease smoking must be balanced against the hardship it will cause for older people who have smoked for many years and some of whom have dementia and other psychiatric conditions."
The HSE previously said that all hospitals are to be included in the smoke free campus policy by the end of 2015.
Source: Nicky Ryan, thejournal.ie, 06/03/14
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