CCH Campus Goes Tobacco-Free on July 4, 2007

Sanford, NC. January 22, 2007 – Beginning July 4, 2007, Central Carolina Hospital will become a smoke-free, tobacco-free campus. The hospital announces today the institution will no longer permit physicians, employees, patients or visitors to use tobacco anywhere on hospital grounds. CCH will be joining the majority of hospitals in NC that have already committed to a tobacco-free campus.

    “By going tobacco free, we are continuing our commitment to health and wellness. We believe in modeling healthy behaviors for our community,” said Doug Doris, CEO at Central Carolina Hospital. The list of diseases to which tobacco is linked is long. High blood pressure, cancer, emphysema and stroke are several of the effects tobacco can have.

    Central Carolina Hospital is becoming part of a huge number of hospitals in North Carolina to go tobacco-free. Others in this area include First Health of the Carolinas Moore Regional, WakeMed Raleigh and Cary, UNC Health Care Systems, Cape Fear Valley Health System, Duke University Health System, Betsy Johnson Regional Hospital and the list continues.

    CCH has assembled a tobacco-free task force made up of non-tobacco users and tobacco users to determine the best way to approach implementing the policy. They are currently working on a program for our employees that use tobacco products that will assist them in quitting, if they so desire.

ABOUT CENTRAL CAROLINA HOSPITAL

Central Carolina Hospital, part of Tenet North Carolina, is a 137-bed acute care hospital located at 1135 Carthage Street in Sanford, N.C. Central Carolina Hospital has been serving the medical and health care needs of Lee County and surrounding counties since 1913. Central Carolina Hospital offers a wide range of programs and services including emergency services, outpatient rehabilitation programs, diagnostic radiology, inpatient and outpatient surgery, and maternity services. Central Carolina Hospital also provides cardiology services including cardiac catheterization, echocardiography and cardiopulmonary rehabilitation programs. The hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, the nation’s oldest and largest hospital accreditation agency. To learn more about Central Carolina Hospital, visit www.centralcarolinahosp.com.