Jump to full article: Otago Daily Times (nz), 2010-07-30
Author: Eileen Goodwin
Intro: Smoking is to be banned at psychiatric wards in Dunedin, a move labelled "forced treatment" by Southern District Health Board (SDHB) member Richard Thomson.
The hospital advisory committee this week endorsed a plan to ban smoking at Wakari Hospital and Dunedin Hospital mental health wards.
Mr Thomson said the ban was akin to forced treatment for psychiatric patients who were not entitled to leave hospital grounds.
This would not be acceptable for any other group of patients, he said.
He emphasised he was not pro-smoking, and he supported encouraging patients to kick the habit.
However, using psychiatric patients' "coincidental imprisonment" to enforce quitting was not right.
Even inpatients with severe respiratory conditions were able to smoke if they left hospital grounds, some even "dragging their drip" on to the street.
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