Abstract
Purpose: The purpose of this study was to monitor current outdoor tobacco policies of colleges within the state of Virginia.
Methods: The tobacco policies of 2-year public colleges, 4-year public colleges, and 4-year private non-profit colleges in Virginia were located online. The policies were then categorized according to the types of tobacco products that were prohibited (Smoking Policies, Tobacco Policies, and E-cigarette Policies) and where those products were prohibited outdoors (No Policy, Entrance Policy, Perimeter Policy, Designated Smoking Areas Policy, All Grounds Policy).
Findings: From a final sample of 62 college policies, 2 (3%) had No Policy, 29 (47%) had an Entrance Policy, 12 (19%) had a Perimeter Policy, 10 (16%) had a Designated Smoking Areas Policy, and 9 (15%) had an All Grounds Policy.
Conclusions: The far majority of colleges do not meet national recommendations for outdoor tobacco policies. Practical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed in the article.
Recommended Citation
Seitz, Christopher M. DrPH, MPH, CHES; Ragsdale, Thomas L. BS; McIntyre, Samuel C. BS; Vest, Alexander BS; and Gartner, Mark BS
(2018)
"Monitoring outdoor tobacco policies of Virginia colleges: A descriptive analysis,"
Virginia Journal of Public Health: Vol. 2:
Iss.
1, Article 6.
Available at:
https://commons.lib.jmu.edu/vjph/vol2/iss1/6