Effective Strategies for Enforcing No-Smoking Policies in Public Spaces

According to Dr. C.J. Houston in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, the only way to stop people from smoking is for society to make it socially unacceptable. By stopping smoking in public places, fewer children and nonsmokers will not be exposed to harmful secondhand smoke. To stop people from smoking in public, there are many things you can do without ripping cigarettes out of peoples' mouths.

Instructions

Stopping the Smokers

• 1

  Place no-smoking signs in areas where smoking is not allowed. Signs should contain a universal image such as the standard lit cigarette crossed out or with a line through it in a red circle. If including wording on signs, include other languages that may be commonly spoken in the area.

• 2

  Make people aware of any local or state smoking bans or laws. A lot of states have laws preventing smoking with a certain distance of building entrances. Signs could also work for this. Another way to pass on the message is to hand out fliers or pamphlets to people smoking in public areas.

• 3

  Lobby your local or state government to create laws banning smoking in public areas. Once there are laws on the books, it's easier to stop people from smoking.

• 4

  Host informational sessions or have motivational speakers in areas where people commonly smoke to explain how smoking is danger to others in public areas.

• 5

  Remove ashtrays or benches where people commonly stand to smoke. Some older building still have walls built to create smoking areas even though smoking may no longer be permitted. Remove the walls or screens so that smokers have no place to hide.