It is quite astonishing to think how American culture has changed its views of tobacco use so quickly. If we recall, it was only a generation ago that about 50 percent of our adult population bought and used cigarettes on a regular basis. Walking into any restaurant or bar meant walking into an atmosphere shrouded in a grey pall. The off-white walls of our homes often had a sticky, yellow tint to them. Car ashtrays were stuffed and overflowing with butts and ashes.
All the while, Madison Avenue flooded us with images that romanticized and glamorized our habits. Hospitals and doctor’s offices were not immune to the pandemic of tobacco use. Nurses often lit up at the nurse’s station as they did their charting. Doctors would grab a smoke at their desks between patients to relieve the stress of the day. Amazingly, most of us hardly noticed. It was just part of life then. Now, 30 years later, thankfully all those things have changed.
The reality of those days, however, still presses against our society in some remarkably detrimental ways. Cigarette smoking more than any other factor is responsible for the cause of chronic bronchitis and emphysema, the two diseases that comprise the bulk of the cases of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease in America. Because of this cultural history of smoking, we have an aging and elderly population with a high percentage of COPD; and the treatment of COPD comes with a staggering price tag impacting our health care system with a stunning effect.
As it is often said, “necessity is the mother of invention.” It has become vitally important for local hospitals to deal with this very bad economic weather in creative ways and Bristol Hospital is doing just that. Bristol Hospital has created a committee to deal with our COPD problems head-on. I lead this COPD Committee which focuses on educating our COPD population, and we have found that patients who understand their disease process will deal with it much more effectively than those who do not. They tend to be more compliant with medications and develop strategies that improve their quality of life. The committee is finding better and better ways of putting this vital information into the hands of our patients during their hospitalizations and beyond.
We have adopted a philosophy of “hospitals without walls” in dealing with our patients who are discharged into nursing homes and those who are discharged to home. Respiratory therapists Michelle Laprise and Gail Malena, are leading a program of “a continuum of care” in which our respiratory therapists follow our patients as they rehabilitate in community nursing homes.
Along with that, they are spearheading an initiative that embeds our respiratory therapists with our visiting nurses to check on those who have been discharged to home who will need our special care.
The committee is also actively encouraging our physicians and patients to access our excellent Cardio-Pulmonary Rehab Program by increasing the awareness of its availability.
Recognizing that isolation is one of the greatest impediments in dealing with COPD, the committee has instituted the “Breathing Better Group.” This is a support group available to the community that combines enjoyable socialization and education. Also, getting to the very core of the problem, Bristol Hospital together with the American Lung Association, is offering evening smoking cessation programs throughout the year.
Tobacco use has become taboo and the storm-tide of tobacco addiction has receded to 20 percent of our adult population.
However at Bristol Hospital, we will be working on the after effects of the storm for a long time to come. We are conscientiously committed to that part of our community that has been most compromised by the impact of the pandemic.
We know it is fiscally responsible to deal effectively with COPD, but much more than that, it is our sincere hope that our patients and their families sense the genuine care and concern we feel for them every day.
Tom Berrill, BA, RT, is a respiratory therapist with Bristol Hospital and has almost 30 years of experience. For information about our “Breathing Better Group” please call 860-585- 3580 and for more information regarding our smoking cessation programs please call 860- 583-5858 or visit www.bristolhospital.org.