The incidence of smoking amongst nurses: a review of the literature

Over the years there has been an ongoing debate about the implications of t he smoking behaviour of nurses in relation to their own health and in the c ontext of their professional role and responsibilities. However it is diffi cult to determine with any degree of accuracy the current incidence of smok ing amongst nurses and most of the available research is based on small sam ples which embrace nurses of different levels and status. Very few recent s tudies in the United Kingdom or elsewhere have focused on this issue. A con fused picture therefore emerges. This paper presents a critical overview of the literature and where appropriate provides data about the incidence of smoking in comparable groups of the general population.