Patient and Visitor Information

ACCESSIBILITY:

We work to ensure that all of our patients and visitors are able to communicate clearly and comfortably with their caregivers.  Forks Community Hospital offers interpreting services, free of charge, to patients and their family members who are deaf, blind, hard of hearing, speech impaired, or who have limited English proficiency.  Please share your specific need when you schedule an appointment or when you arrive at Forks Community Hospital.

TOBACCO-FREE POLICY:

A tobacco-free environment helps create a safe and healthy workplace. Smoking and secondhand smoke are known to cause serious lung diseases, heart disease and cancer. Forks Community Hospital recognizes the hazards caused by tobacco use and exposure to secondhand tobacco smoke. Our policy to provide a tobacco-free environment for all employees and visitors was established to keep a safe and healthy workplace environment. This policy covers the smoking of any tobacco product and the use of oral tobacco products, “spit” tobacco and e-cigarettes, and it applies to both employees and non­employee visitors.

No use of tobacco products including cigarettes and “spit tobacco” or e-cigarettes is permitted within the facilities or on the property at any time.

Tobacco-Free Policy

Tobacco Free Policy
Click to view policy

REFERENCES:

Office on Smoking and Health Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC)
Toll-free number: 1-800-232-4636 (1-800-CDC-INFO)
Website: www.cdc.gov/tobacco

American Lung Association
Toll-Free number: 1-800-LUNGUSA
Website: www.lung.org/stop-smoking/

DEFINITIONS:

Tobacco free includes marijuana, e-cigarettes, cigars, and chewing tobacco.

PROCEDURE:

  1. Employees will be informed of the Tobacco Free Policy via signs posted throughout properties owned and operated by Forks Community Hospital, including company owned vehicles.
    Visitors will be informed of Tobacco-free Policy by their hosts, the meeting invite, email correspondences and signs posted throughout the properties owned and operated by the Hospital.
  2. Upon admission to the Nursing Care Unit, the patient will be informed of our tobacco free campus and Tobacco Free Policy.
  3. Education advising the patient not to smoke because of medical effects on healing and suggestions for smoking alternatives will be provided by their physician.
  4. Nicotine replacement therapy will be provided for the patient as ordered by their physician.
  5. Outdoor smoking will not be allowed on any hospital district properties.
  6. Visitors and employees are also prohibited from smoking inside their vehicles if parked on premises under the hospital’s control.
  7. Smoking cessation support is available for both patients and employees.