Table 2.

Themes and representative quotations from a descriptive phenomenological study of SHS among patients with CHD conducted in the cardiovascular ward of a tertiary Grade A hospital in China, December 2023 to April 2024 (N=12)

Themes	Representative quotations
1. Limited and fragmented understanding of secondhand smoke	‘It is definitely bad for my health, but I don’t know its specific hazards.’ (P3)
2. Difficulty avoiding SHS exposure across everyday settings	‘You can’t stop people from smoking in your office … our boss can’t stop it … let alone us.’ (P3)
3. Aversion to SHS and sociocultural constraints on speaking up	‘We can’t ask people not to smoke. I am ashamed to ask others not to smoke.’ (P2)
4. Reliance on smoke-free policies and their enforcement	‘It is well managed in Shenzhen. Smoking is not allowed in the factory. In Shenzhen, if someone is found smoking in a restaurant, the restaurant owner will also be fined.’ (P5)
5. Smoke-free homes as an ideal yet difficultto-achieve goal	‘They don’t smoke in the room, but smoke on the balcony.’ (P12)