Jump to full article: WATE 6 (Knoxville, TN), 2010-01-18
Author: JILL MCNEAL 6 News Anchor/Reporter
Intro: KNOXVILLE (WATE) -- There's controversy over a Chattanooga hospital's decision to stop hiring tobacco users.
Officials at Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga said the decision is an extension of the hospital's commitment to health and isn't based on potential health care cost savings.
"If it was easier, yes, I would love to quit," says local surgery tech David Gladson.
But like many people, Gladson says he's addicted. "I've tried to quit a couple of times and it always seems to come back to me."
But Gladson admits, applying for a job at a hospital that didn't hire smokers might do the trick. "I'd probably have to quit right there, right then, just to be able to get a job."
"I think hospitals really do need to try to lead by example," says Dr. Mark Green, chief of staff at Blount Memorial Hospital.
Green says while tobacco isn't forbidden among hospital employees there, it's discouraged.
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