SMOKING: THE INTERNSHIP AND EMPLOYMENT

Hospitals, clinics, and other healthcare facilities are further promoting the health and safety of their communities by adopting 100% smoke free campus policies that protect all employees, visitors, and patients from secondhand smoke exposure within their campuses - including but not limited to facility buildings, grounds, parking lots, plazas, vehicles, and sidewalks adjacent to the facility. While virtually all healthcare facilities have policies requiring that all buildings be smoke free, an entirely smoke free campus is becoming increasingly common.

*See the list below for a list of Pennsylvania facilities with 100% smoke free campuses (there may be additional facilities not listed here and the list does not include facilities that only exclude smoking indoors).

In light of the smoking policies of healthcare facilities and the knowledge that more facilities are adopting these policies every year, South Hills School of Business & Technology feels obligated to inform allied health program applicants that these policies may affect internship and employment opportunities.

Many of these facilities not only have smoke free campuses but go a step further by denying internships and employment to smokers. Some of these facilities will simply ask the applicant if they smoke, while others will drug test for nicotine as a basis for their internship/employment decision.

At South Hills we want to see that our students have the greatest choice for internships, as well as the greatest choice for employment. We strongly recommend that if you smoke, now is the time to stop. The school can assist you by providing smoking cessation resources.

This is also a notification that as part of the drug testing that is performed by many internship

and employment sites, testing for nicotine is now included. This includes nicotine consumed by smoking, smokeless tobacco, and nicotine gum or patches.

I understand that many healthcare facilities have Non-Smoking and/or Smoke Free Campus policies that prohibit smoking in any of the facilities or on any of the grounds including vehicles. I also understand that some healthcare facilities will test for nicotine and deny internships and/or employment to smokers.

I have received and read a copy of this notification and understand the effect that smoking may have on my internship and employment opportunities.

Applicant Date