Starting Sept. 1, St. Peter's Hospital is going completely smoke free with no use of tobacco products allowed anywhere on the campus, inside or out.

The policy includes all indoor and outdoor locations on the main hospital campus as well as St. Peter's Medical Group Broadway, North Montana, and the Maria Dean Medical Office Building.

";This policy supports our mission to improve the health and well-being of the community," said President and CEO John Solheim. ";Our tobacco-free campus is an important step to promote and encourage healthy lifestyles in our community."

St. Peter's has prohibited smoking inside its buildings for many years. The new policy will apply to patients, visitors, medical staff, employees and all others who either visit any property owned by St. Peter's.

The move is part of a growing trend in medical facilities.

According to Darby Bramble of the Lewis and Clark County-Broadwater County Tobacco Use Prevention Program, 23 medical facilities in the state have tobacco-free campuses.

Helena's Shodair Children's Hospital has had a smoke-free campus since 1998, according to Bramble.

Two years ago, the Lewis and Clark City-County Health Department became the first health department in the state to go tobacco free, and Bramble said many others have since followed suit.

According to Melanie Reynolds, public health officer with the City-County Health Department, the department had no trouble instituting the policy.

The health department gets 30,000-40,000 visitors a year, and she never heard a complaint from a visitor or an employee.

";We had no problem with that. If anything, we get thank yous from folks," Reynolds said, adding that parents bringing kids in for immunizations have been especially thankful.

";We congratulate St. Pete's," she said. ";It sends out a really strong, positive message."

St. Peter's is one of the largest employers in Helena, with 961 employees as of December of 2008.

In preparation for the change, St. Peter's is offering tobacco-quitting classes for employees who want to quit.

";Smoking contributes to 30 percent of all cancers and nearly 90 percent of lung cancer deaths," said Dr. David Lechner, president of St. Peter's Medical Group. ";This new policy will heighten awareness of the health risks of tobacco use and be an incentive for people to quit."

Others in the community who want to quit smoking or chewing tobacco can visit www.stpetes.org for dates on ";Quit For Life" tobacco cessation classes, or call the Montana Tobacco Quit Line at

1-800-QUIT-NOW.

Features editor Joe Menden: 447-4087 or joe.menden@helenair.com