SMOKING will be banned at The Dales unit, attached to the Calderdale Royal Hospital, from Monday.
The premises are run by the South West Yorkshire Mental Health NHS Trust, which has worked closely with patients, staff and stop-smoking specialists in preparation for the ban.
Smoking inside and outside the main hospital was banned at the begin
ning of October.
The extension means staff at The Dales will no longer be allowed to light up anywhere while on duty and visitors and contractors will also be told to put out their cigarettes while on site.
"We are committed to protecting the health of people who use our services, staff and visitors by ensuring a smoke-free environment.
"Breathing someone else's smoke increases your risks of heart disease, cancer and respiratory problems," said Steven Michael, acting trust chief executive.
"Many people with mental health problems who smoke want to give up and we are committed to helping them make this vital improvement to their health."
Many people with mental health problems smoke and are particularly vulnerable to nicotine addiction.
Smoking rates are at least twice as high among mental health patients compared with the general population, yet research has shown around 50 per cent of smokers with mental health problems want to quit.
"While we will be making every effort to encourage and support people to stop smoking we do recognise that for some patients at our acute mental health units, quitting smoking is a very difficult thing to do.
"We will, therefore, be making exceptions strictly on an individual case basis and these people will be able to smoke in designated areas," said Mr Michael.
