Smoking habits amongst house physicians working at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center, Karachi, Pakistan

The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of smoking among house physicians working at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Center, Karachi, Pakistan. Sixty-four (32%) of the 200 house physicians were smokers; 50% (36) had started smoking in their twenties and 44% (28) in their teens. Seventy-five per cent (48) of the smokers were influenced by friends, 20% (13) by cigarette commercials and the remainder by their parents. Ninetyfive per cent (61) smoked during duty hours. The frequency of smoking among young doctors was higher than the overall prevalence of smoking in Pakistan.