Prince of Wales: I gave up smoking at 11 after 'a few cigarettes behind a chicken coop' He said 'I gave up at 11 when I had a few cigarettes behind a chicken coop'. I believe it was tongue in cheek. The Prince has previously told school children he gave up smoking after having "one or two strong ones behind the chicken run at school." Speaking in 1999 to a group of Slovenian pupils, he advised them: "The good thing is to give them up when you are young." The 11-year-old Prince of Wales attended Cheam Preparatory School in Berkshire, before moving to Gordonstoun in the north-east of Scotland. The Prince of Wales also used the event to hail the dedication and hard work of the nation's nurses, saying they give "exceptional care" to patients across the country. Writing in the Nursing Times ahead of the reception at Clarence House, for nominees and winners of the magazine's annual awards, he said he believed nurses' care and kindness was "vital" and stressed the importance of a holistic approach to those who are sick. Charles, who is patron of more than 30 healthcare organisations, said his visits to hospitals over the past 40 years had shown him just how pivotal a role nurses play. He wrote: "In all these instances, together with many others, it was abundantly clear to me just how important the emotional connection between patients and skilled, hardworking nurses actually was. In general, quite apart from the medical expertise that nursing staff provide on a daily and nightly basis, the reassurance and simple human kindness that they can also dispense is, I believe, vital and must surely impact positively on the recovery of individuals. Human kindness, reassurance and sympathy are age-old qualities, yet they are as important today as they have ever been. The Nursing Times Awards recognize this, as well as the importance of a holistic approach - treating the whole person, rather than just the symptoms of disease. When this approach is combined with the best of conventional medicine, and adopted by the whole healthcare team, with scrupulous attention to every aspect of the patient's personal, medical and nursing needs, great progress can be made. Charles said that those nominated for the awards, in 19 categories, are making a "tangible difference" to people's lives, singling out nominees including Melissa Rochon from the Royal Brompton Hospital, who carried out a study into why some patients were more susceptible to infection than others, and Nina Turner, a nurse at Maidstone Prison who is is trying to improve the care of prisoners with chronic lung disease. He added: "The nominees I have mentioned are just a few of the many thousands of nurses who understand the value of the 'human touch' and who are committed to working day in, day out, in hospitals and in the community, to give patients, carers and families exceptional care. It strikes me that we must support them in their work and recognize their contribution however we can. It is impossible to express the value of the care they give, often when people are at their most vulnerable, and I can only congratulate them on all their achievements.