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A&E staff 'not assessing drinking levels'Date: 26/07/2007 09:03:16
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The majority of A&E departments are failing to identify problem drinkers and offer them long-term assistance, a new report shows.
Despite the large number of alcohol-related cases being dealt with by the nation's emergency departments, just four out of the 191 hospitals looked at in the study were found to be assessing alcohol consumption.
In comparison, the research, which was carried out by the National Addiction Centre and published in the Emergency Medicine Journal, found that 87 per cent of departments do not ask their patients any questions regarding their drinking habits.
"Research has found that up to 40 per cent of people attending A&E departments would benefit from help or advice about their drinking," said the study's author Bob Patton.
"Yet as staff are not using formal screening tools to measure alcohol-related harm, the hazardous drinkers may not get the help they need because they aren't being asked questions about their alcohol use."
Following on from the findings, the Department of Health has stated that it is to conduct further research into the value of offering alcohol advice in A&E departments, with charities arguing that analysing and treating the causes of alcohol addiction, including stress, could prevent patient re-attendance and save the NHS money in the long-term.
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