§ Mr. McNamaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what the rules are governing the consumption of alcohol and tobacco(a) on hospital premises, (b) in patient areas and (c) in emergency services staff areas. [74160]
§ Ms BlearsThere are no centrally imposed rules on alcohol consumption on National Health Service premises, but all NHS trusts are expected to have policies in place that reflect their need to provide patients with high quality medical care in a safe environment. The Department issued Guidance entitledTaking alcohol and other drugs out of the NHS workplace in February 2001, which deals with the issue of alcohol consumption by NHS staff, but does not ban it from NHS premises.
Many NHS trusts have already banned smoking in their hospitals and hospital grounds and the Government have set milestones for implementing smoking policies across the NHS as part of the national service framework on coronary heart disease.