Psychiatrist requests smokes for his schizophrenic patient

I Am A Psychiatrist at the Hawaii State Hospital.

In this October 2000 letter, a staff psychiatrist at the Hawaii State Hospital writes to the R.J. Reynolds tobacco company to beg for free cigarettes for her schizophrenic patient. The doctor says her patient becomes violent if he doesn't get his scheduled cigarette and explains that he cannot afford to buy cigarettes on his own. The doctor says, "When he runs out of cigarettes he becomes highly agitated to the point where he has seriously injured staff and other patients...To be honest, in these cases, providing [the patient with]a cigarette is generally much more effective at decreasing agitation than most medications I can provide."

Company/Source Collection: R.J. Reynolds Document Date: 04 Oct 2000 Length: 2 pages Bates No. 522700931/0932 URL: http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/tid/xsm70d00

Related links and information

 * 1986 advertisement for Merit cigarettes:Title: "Schizophrenic. The New Merit. We've got flavor down to a science."  Ad copy reads, "...the New Merit has as much taste as cigarettes with up to 57% more tar. Big taste, lower tar, all in one. For New Merit, having two sides is just normal behavior."

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