JUNE 2, 2016— Underscoring its position as an advocate for wellness, and to encourage healthy choices for the community, Marshall Medical Center will become a smoke-free facility effective July 1, 2016.

Marshall campuses, including the Hospital, Cameron Park, El Dorado Hills, Georgetown and all clinic and outpatient locations, will no longer allow smoking on Marshall property. This includes vaporizers or e-cigarettes. “The need for this policy is clear,” says Marshall CEO James Whipple. “Our mission is to improve the health of our community, so it’s impossible to justify supporting a habit that is not only terrible for the smoker’s health, but can affect others as well. The policy change is in line with all other healthcare facilities in the region, which have already gone to smoke-free environments.”

To provide support to the community and to employees who smoke, Marshall will be offering smoking cessation sessions free of charge to all, as follows:

LOCATION: Marshall Hospital, South Wing Lobby 5:30- 7:30 p.m.

Begins

Mondays, June 13
Tuesdays, July 12
Mondays, August 8

Quit By

July 6
August 2
August 29

Graduate

July 25
August 23
September 19

For more information and to register, call 530-626-2990.

When this change takes effect on July 1, signs will remind everyone of the new policy, and employees will be asked to help patients and visitors comply with the change. “We appreciate the community’s support and understanding of why we need to make this change, and are confident that over time, it will just become an expectation of being at Marshall,” Whipple adds. “Our biggest hope is that through our supportive smoking cessation resources, that we can positively affect the health of our patients and the community-at-large.”

WHY KICKING THE HABIT IS IMPORTANT Here are some startling facts about what smoking does to your health, courtesy of the American Lung Association

• Every year in the United States, nearly 500,000 people die from tobacco use and secondhand smoke exposure, making it the leading cause of preventable death in our nation.
• Cigarette smoke contains more than 7,000 chemicals, at least 69 of which are known to cause cancer.
• Smoking is directly responsible for approximately 90 percent of lung cancer deaths and approximately 80 percent of deaths caused by chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), including emphysema and chronic bronchitis.
• Among adults who have ever smoked daily, 87 percent had tried their first cigarette by the time they were 18 years of age, and 95 percent had by age 21.
• Among current smokers, chronic lung disease accounts for 73 percent of smokingrelated conditions. Even among smokers who have quit, chronic lung disease still accounts for 50 percent of smoking-related conditions.
• Smoking harms nearly every organ in the body, and is a main cause of lung cancer and COPD. It also is a cause of coronary heart disease, stroke and a host of other cancers and diseases.

YOU CAN QUIT. MARSHALL CAN HELP. ENROLL IN OUR FREE SMOKING CESSATION CLASSES NOW BY CALLING THE NUMBER PROVIDED IN THE MAIN ARTICLE.

Marshall Medical Center is an independent, nonprofit community healthcare provider located in the heart of the Sierra Foothills. Marshall Medical Center includes Marshall Hospital, a fully accredited acute care facility with 113 beds in Placerville; several outpatient facilities in Cameron Park, El Dorado Hills and Georgetown; and many community health and education programs. Marshall has more than 200 board-certified physicians and 1,500 employees providing quality healthcare services to more than 180,000 residents of El Dorado County.