Smoke-Free in the East Bay

Kaiser Permanente's East Bay campuses have been smoke-free since November 15, 2007. As a leading health care organization, we want to lead by example and model healthy behaviors. We care about our members' health and advise smokers to quit. When necessary, every Oakland and Richmond Medical Center employee has a responsibility to gently inform members and other staff about our no-smoking policy.

Where can someone smoke?
People who want to smoke will have to leave the campus grounds. This policy may deter someone from having a cigarette and help him/her to take the first step toward quitting smoking.

What about people's "right" to smoke outdoors?
Kaiser Permanente is responsible for providing a safe and healthy environment for our employees, members, and visitors. Because our facilities are privately owned, we can establish our own policies to promote total health.

Why not provide a designated place to smoke?
Designated smoking areas send a mixed message that smoking is sometimes OK. As a leading health care organization, we want to be clear that smoking endangers health, and we encourage smokers to quit.

What programs do we offer to help smokers quit?
Kaiser Permanente offers a variety of stop-smoking classes at no cost to employees, and at no-or low-cost to members and the public. For more information, call Health Education (510) 752-6150.

Also available are:

• HealthMedia Breathe: KP's award-winning, personalized smoking cessation program at www.kp.org/healthylifestyles
  
• California Smokers' Helpline:
  1-800-No-Butts(1-800-662-8887) (English)
  1-800-45-No-Fume(1-800-456-6386) (Spanish)

Why the No-Smoking Policy?
Smoking is the single most preventable cause of death in the United States, with more than 440,000 Americans dying each year from smoking-related illnesses such as cardiovascular disease, heart attack, stroke, and cancer. The good news is: When people stop smoking, the risk for many diseases begins to drop immediately. Studies show that having a smoke-free workplace significantly reduces the frequency of onsite smoking and average daily tobacco consumption among smokers who don't quit. East Bay wants to send a clear message that smoking endangers health.

Our no-smoking policy supports Kaiser Permanente's commitment to total health and to helping our employees and members thrive.