Alcohol Brief Interventions

ABI and Prevention and Education Prevention and education is defined as largely concerned with encouraging and developing ways to support and empower individuals, families and communities in the acquisition of knowledge, attitudes and skills in which to avoid or reduce the development of alcohol problems, drug misuse and alcohol and drug related harm.

Alcohol Problems Cost Scotland £3.56 Billion (university of York) Contribute to many physical and mental health problems Affect non-drinkers as well as drinkers Violence Children Relationships Community Are increasing Consumption is rising Deaths are rising Related diseased are rising

National Alcohol Strategy The most important national developments are: Changing Scotland Relationship with Alcohol: A Framework for Action (The Scottish Government 2009). Strategy refreshed in November 2018 LDP (Local Delivery Plan) Standard. NHSGGC has target delivery of 13,085 ABIs

What is an Alcohol Brief Intervention? An ABI is a conversation with an individual about their alcohol use that is: Short (5/10 mins) Evidence based > I in 8 success rate Structured (stages/steps) Non-confrontational style Seeks to motivate and support the person to think about and/or plan alcohol behaviour change

What is NOT a Brief Intervention? Giving someone a leaflet about alcohol and telling them to read it, without any accompanying discussion it not an evidence based approach However, brief interventions are not the same as alcohol counselling ABI’s do not require long discussions to be effective. 5-10 minutes is considered as effective as longer or multiple sessions

What is the evidence? Where we have evidence on the effectiveness of ABI’s, it is very strong - Key findings include: Brief Interventions can reduce alcohol consumption and episodes of binge drinking in hazardous drinkers for periods lasting up to a year. The reduction in alcohol consumption is of the order of 15 – 35%. There is great interest in trying ABI’s in different settings.

Who is an ABI suitable for? About 1 million people per year (quarter of Scotland adult population) were found to be ‘hazardous adult drinkers, comprising of about: A third of the adult male population (30% / 605,000) A fifth of the adult female population (20% / 442,000) Among all adult drinkers, the mean units per week was highest for those aged 55-64 The highest levels for men being among those aged 55-64 It is estimated that of these a quarter of a million adults are definitely harming their health as a result. The average weekly alcohol consumption of harmful drinkers is substantially higher among those living in the most deprived quintile areas in Scotland.

What does an ABI involve? ABI’s use a style of conversation based on a technique called ‘Motivational Interviewing’ which: is a collaborative style practitioners can use to ‘guide’ individuals can be used to ‘explore’ and resolve their ‘mixed’ feelings (ambivalence) about behaviour change can be used to enhance motivation and ability to make positive choices that are right for them.

Brief Intervention Flow Chart

ABI DVD

Thank You Contact: Graeme.Mathew@ggc.scot.nhs.uk