Dubai Healthcare City
Health, Safety and Environment Management System
Leadership Procedure
DHCC/HSE/LP-08Smoking Free Healthcare Facility
1.0 / Introduction:
Health care facilities are a vital and often central part of our communities. As health care institutions it is important that we educate and model healthy behaviors for our communities. With this in mind, implementation of a smoke-free environment sends a clear message of DHCC management commitment to create and sustain healthy communities. Additionally, a smoke-free environment encourages both employees and patients to quit smoking.
2.0 / Reference Standard:
  • Federal Law No 15
  • UAE Ministry of Health (MOH). Ministry Circular #1, 1996, Banning Smoking in all the Health Care facilities under domain of MOH.
  • The World Health Organization (WHO). WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control. Geneva, Switzerland: WHO Document Production Services; 2005
  • DHCC HSE Approved Code of Practice

3.0 / Purpose:
To provide a healthy, tobacco-free environment for all staff, patients and visitors, and to reduce tobacco-related morbidity and mortality among staff, patients and the broader community.
4.0
4.1 / Scope:
This policy applies to all,
  • Healthcare facility staff, patients, visitors, contractors and others accessing the facility.
  • It applies to all buildings owned or occupied within Dubai Healthcare City including residential accommodation,and businesses
  • Vehicles owned by the healthcare facility employees and parking within the building spaces.

5.0 / Definitions:
Tobacco: Tobacco plants of all types and factions and parts of the roots and stems, leaves and fruits, seeds, green or dried.
Tobacco products: Products which consist wholly or partly from tobacco leaves as raw material, whether true or Sliced or chopped, and whether their natural state or mixed with other materials or a problem in any form, Powder and tobacco in any form or any other material in the vehicle enters the tobacco components.
Tobacco use: Tobacco use types by smoking or chewing, inhalation or absorption or used for the purpose of smoking or tobacco use.
Advertising and promotion: Definition of the plants grown in tobacco and tobacco products using any of the print media and broadcast directly or indirectly, or any other means to encourage the trading and increase the number of users to it.
Public area/space: Place prepared to receive the public or a certain category of people for any purpose.
Enclosed public places: Public space, which has the form of building integrated air, but does not enter through the ports that are intended to be considered as a public place closed and public transport.
6.0 / Tobacco-free policy
6.1
6.2 / Tobacco products
  • Tobacco products must not be advertised on healthcare facility premises.
  • The healthcare facility / business unit will not seek or accept sponsorship from any tobacco manufacturer or company
Information and Communication
  • Patients will be informed of the tobacco-free policy at the time of admission or outpatient appointments.
  • No smoking signs will be clearly visible at all entrances throughout the healthcare facility.
  • The tobacco-free policy will be displayed at the main entrance of every building.
  • Staff will be informed by Human resources dept of the tobacco-free policy at recruitment and orientation.
  • Tobacco-free clauses will be incorporated into all new contracts.
  • Staff who wish to smoke may only do so at the designated smoking area 5m outside the building
  • Employees who are in violation of the policy, smoking will be subject to disciplinary action by the human resources (first time warning followed by penalty/fine, based on the policy of the organization. After 3 episodes of penalty/fine, business unit should take more aggressive disciplinary action
The policy prohibits the use of tobacco products in all areas belonging to clinics, patient rooms, wards, lab, pharmacy, offices, meeting rooms, halls, lobby,cafeteria, shops, storage areas, bathrooms, corridor, gym, stairs, parking lot within the premises of the healthcare facility building and outside the 5 meter vicinity of the building.
The policy also prohibits the use of tobacco products in meetings, conferences, workshops, training programs and such sponsored by the health care organizations.
It is prohibited to smoke in closed public spaces
It is Prohibited to allocate equipments and automated equipment for the sale of tobacco products
It is prohibted to license cafés (or equivilant) that offer any types of tobacco or its products inside residential buildings
Educate employees, patients, visitors and guests through:
  • Awareness sessions
  • Training courses for employees for conducting smoking cessation clinics / programs / services
  • Feedback sessions for employees
  • Newsletter, staff emails
  • Signs, displays, leaflets
  • Flyers/posters in waiting areas
  • News releases to local media
  • All HCF staff should participate in mass awareness campaign against cigarette smoking
In the care of breaching any other requirement, the concerned authority will recieve a direct fine of AED 500 to reconcile the situation. If reconciliation wasn’t possible, the issue gets raised to court, and the penalty will be a fine of no less than AED 3000 and no more than AED 10,000.Penalties will vary based on the number of violations.
7.0 / Attachments:
LP 03 Enforcement Policy
LP 03 A-01 Penalty Matrix
8.0 / Revision history:
Revision 1: 5 Dec 2010. Reason: Adoption of TECOM corporate policy, Revised by: HSE Manager
Revision 2: 19 June 2012, Reason: DHCC Policy, UAE federal regulations, Revised by: HSE Manager
Issued on: 30 June 2010 / Revised on: 19 June 2012 / Revision:2.0 / Page 1 of 4
DHCC HSE, PO: 66566, Phone:+971 4 3622816, Direct:+971 4 362 2723, Email: