NCJ Number
196911
Journal
Drug and Alcohol Review Volume: 21 Issue: 2 Dated: June 2002 Pages: 105-112
Date Published
June 2002
Length
8 pages
Annotation
This study assessed 6-month outcomes associated with brief alcohol intervention among psychiatric patients admitted to general hospital psychiatric wards.
Abstract
Consecutive patients were screened for excessive alcohol consumption in the psychiatric wards of three metropolitan hospitals in Perth, Australia over approximately 18 months between 1994 and 1995. Patients were diagnosed with acute psychiatric disorders requiring short-term hospitalization and were voluntary patients. At admission, all new patients on the psychiatric wards at each hospital were given the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) using the 6-month period prior to hospitalization as the reference period. Patients scoring eight or more (consuming alcohol at hazardous plus levels) were eligible for the study. Study participants completed a number of self-report questionnaires including the Symptom Checklist SCL-90-R, and the Severity of Alcohol Dependence Questionnaire (SADQ-C). Prior to discharge all study patients were randomized to receive one of two types of intervention: an information package or a motivational interview. The information package detailed safer alcohol consumption patterns. The motivational interview was an individual 45-minute treatment based on a non-judgmental approach. Findings showed that between baseline and the 6-month follow-up, patients randomized to receive the motivational interview had a significantly greater reduction in total weekly consumption of alcohol than the group that received the information package. A greater proportion of those in the motivational interview group showed an improvement in their alcohol-use classifications compared with the information group. Recommendations are made to those wishing to undertake alcohol brief intervention in the general hospital psychiatric setting. Alcohol screening should be incorporated into the routine assessment and medical management of psychiatric units. This early screening maximizes the remaining time available to obtain further information from questionnaires or liver function results, which form the basis of the brief alcohol intervention. The prompt execution of both these stages will maximize the amount of time to implement the brief intervention program. 1 figure, 2 tables, 47 references