Smoke-Free OSU: A Snapshot of the First Year of the Policy

Healthy OSU

The Project Team

• Marc BravermanSchool of Social & Behavioral Health SciencesExtension Family and Community Health Program

• Lisa HoogestegerDirector, Healthy Campus Initiatives

• Jessica Johnson Research associate, Healthy Campus InitiativesGraduate student, Master of Public Health program

Special thanks to...• Pat Ketcham

Student Health Services

• Rebecca Mathern & Amanda ChampagneOSU Office of the Registrar

• Linda Sather & Donna ChastainOSU Office of Human Resources

• Lisa Leventhal & Candi LoebOSU Office of Research Integrity

• President’s Office OSU-Corvallis & OSU-Cascades

• Virginia LesserSurvey Research Center & Dept. of Statistics

• Brian FlayCollege of Public Health and Human Sciences

• Chris SinnettCommunity Network

• Family & Community Health Program, OSU Extension,College of Public Health and Human Sciences

Today’s presentation and discussion

• Focused on Corvallis campus only• Will examine how the policy has been working• Will identify current issues and actions needed

Planning for the policy at OSU

Spring 2008: Smoke-free campus proposed by Student Health Advisory Board

Fall 2008: OSU Smoke-Free Task Force created

January 2011: Smoke-free OSU-Corvallis decision finalized

September 2012: Smoke-free campus policy begins

Backdrop:The national trend in smoke-free

campuses

Campuses that are 100% smoke-free or tobacco-free:Fall 2008................... 130Fall 2011................... 586November 2013..... 1,127 (including 758 tobacco-free)

Source: Americans for Nonsmokers Rights (www.no-smoke.org)

Our primary evaluation questions

• What is the level of awareness on campus about the policy?

• What are the levels of support for the new OSU policy?

• How much smoke exposure is there on campus now?

• What are opinions about how the policy should be enforced?

• How have smokers responded? What are current patterns of

smoking and tobacco use?

The Campus SurveySpring 2013

• The databases• Students: From Office of Registrar N = 22,141• Faculty & Staff: From Office of Human Resources N = 4,820

• Time frame• May 23: Initial invitations• May 29 – June 13: Reminders (3 to students; 2 to faculty/staff)

• IRB review

The Campus SurveyData Analysis

• Response rates Students: 25.7% Faculty/Staff: 42.6%

• Post-survey weighting Student responses weighted by: ▪ Gender

▪ Class standing Faculty/Staff responses weighted by: ▪ Gender

▪ Age ▪ OSU position

• Smoking rates (weighted) Students: 4.4% daily; 8.3% occasional Faculty/Staff: 3.0% daily; 1.6% occasional

Findings:Awareness of the smoke-free policy

______________________ ______________________ Students Faculty & Staff

Non-smokers Smokers Non-smokers Smokers50%

55%

60%

65%

70%

75%

80%

85%

90%

95%

100%

89% 90% 92%

99%

Support for Smoke-Free Policy(“Our campus should be 100% smoke-free”)

All

Non

-sm

oker

s

Smok

ers

All

Non

-sm

oker

s

Smok

ers

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

0.7160.797

0.177

0.77 0.803

0.1

_________________________ ________________________ Students Faculty & Staff

Comments:Support/ Non-support for the policy

• “Thank you for making campus smoking-free! I have been here since 2008 and have seen a significant decrease in the amount of smoking & I LOVE it!” (Student)

• “I was skeptical at first that this was over-bearing, but now support the policy.” (Faculty/Staff)

• “Smoking isn’t illegal and should be allowed on campus. We need to stop trying to legislate behavior.” (Faculty/Staff)

• “The smoke free policy has made an enormous difference to those of us with asthma....I have not had to visit a doctor this year for asthma.” (Faculty/Staff)

• “Completely ban tobacco use anywhere and everywhere on OSU property.” (Faculty/Staff)

Exposure to smoke on campus – at building entrances

All Non-smokers Smokers0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

19% 21%11%

9% 9%

6%

Three or more timesOnce or twice30% 17%28%

Exposure to smoke on campus – near campus boundary

All Non-smokers Smokers0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

27% 28% 22%

50% 51%48%

Three or more times

Once or twice

77% 79% 70%

“It bothers me to go through cigarette smoke ...outside”

All

Non

-sm

oker

s

Smok

ers

All

Non

-sm

oker

s

Smok

ers

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

0.7760.856

0.232

0.822 0.857

0.143

__________________________ _________________________ Students Faculty & Staff

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

0.217 0.244

0.047

0.288 0.299

0.078

Would ask a smoker to put out his/her cigarette...

__________________________ _________________________ Students Faculty & Staff

Students’ opinions about enforcing the policy

All Non-smokers Smokers0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

26%

19%

73%

47%52%

14%16% 18%

3%

35%39%

9%12% 12%

17%

No enforcement procedure

Small fine

Large fine

Refer violators

Other strategy

Comments:Enforcement of the policy

• “I do have qualms still about the amount of visitors who smoke during sporting events.” (Student)

• “Gentle warnings should be given. I don’t want it to be punitive, but I also don’t want people to smoke on campus.” (Student)

• “There are a lot of visitors on campus every day not seeming to know the rules. We need BIG signs to let people know this is a nonsmoking campus.” (Faculty/Staff)

• “When it was implemented in September 2012, students did follow the policy...However, as the time goes by, I see more and more students are coming back to smoke within the campus sphere.” (Faculty/Staff)

Adjustment to the policy by smokers

NRT

SLT o

r E-c

ig

Phys. A

ctivity

Oth

er d

istr

action

Go

off c

ampu

s

Smok

e on

cam

pus

No

need/

Oth

er0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

3%9% 8%

15%

45%

13%

33%

6% 3%7%

21%

62%

6%

23%Students

Fac/Staff

Compliance: Have you smoked on campus…?

Students Fac/Staff0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

100%

57%

80%

32%

14%11% 5%

Yes, many times/every day

Yes, once/a few times

No, not at all

Comments:Other concerns & suggestions

• “It does not seem like a healthy choice for a female smoker who lives in the dorms and is up late studying to have to walk a mile off campus to have her smoke break.” (Student)

• “I think the campus needs to acknowledge the cultural aspect of smoking for students and be sensitive to that when creating and enforcing policies around smoking.” (Student)

• “I think the options the campus has available to assist in student efforts to quit smoking need to be made more apparent...I had no idea these options were available.” (Student)

Interpretation & Conclusions

1. How is the policy working?

2. What needs our attention now?

3. Next steps: Sustainability

How is the policy working?• High levels of support by students, faculty,

and staff• Campus community is largely satisfied with

smoke-free environment• ...except for campus boundary

• Input has been received for enforcement decisions

• OSU has been recognized as a “Gold Campus” & “mentor campus”NW Center for Public Health Practice, Univ. of Washington

What needs our attention now?

(a) Trash & refuse

25

What needs our attention now?

(b) Signage

Examples from U. of O.

What needs our attention now?

(c) Communication & Enforcement• Campus partners: Visitors• Community partners: Businesses, Health Department• How will enforcement be carried out?

Next Steps: Sustainability

• Increase trash & refuse pickup• Implement signage across campus• Continued communication and education

• Continued monitoring• Increased enforcement

• Work with OSU-Cascades on their decision process

Questions & Discussion

http://oregonstate.edu/smokefree