ORMOND BEACH -- On the day of the Great American Smokeout Challenge, a couple of Volusia County hospitals had new rules for smokers, and on that day, cold turkey wasn't just something for lunch.

The proud pops hanging around the nursery at Florida Hospital Ormond Memorial and Florida Hospital Oceanside will have to wait to light up that traditional cigar, at least while they are at the hospital.
    
That's because those hospitals have become 100 percent smoke-free. The new rules apply to the entire hospital campus, even the parking lot.

"When you hear that even people that work in ICU and respiratory therapy continue to smoke, what it tells me is that the habit and addiction is so significant that people really cannot, on their own, do this," said Mark Larose, chief executive officer for Florida Hospital Ormond Memorial.

Employees have been smoke-free at the facilities since 2005, and now all visitors and patients will have to look elsewhere to enjoy a smoke.

To help spread the word, the hospitals handed out free, cold turkey sandwiches to those who quit cold turkey Thursday.

Despite the cold turkey approach, the hospital's CEO was quick to point out that they are still there to help those who need it to kick the habit.

"We'll individualize a program for our employees, whatever it takes to help them to stop. Cost is not an issue. We want our employees and their families to benefit from stopping that habit that is so devastating," Larose said.

Rachel Daniels quit three years ago and recognizes there's a fine line between helping and harping.

"I try to just tell them they just have to do it in their own time, because I had to do it in my own time. So if I just tell them that, they don't think it's harping.  They know I want them healthy because I want to keep them around," Daniels said.

Every year, 20 percent of the population in the United States smokes --  a number that is dropping a bit each year.

Meanwhile, a half-million Americans die from tobacco-related diseases each year.

For an eye-opening experience, follow this link to the American Cancer Society's Web site and they will calculate just how many cigarettes you're smoking during any given period.

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