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Urgent action needed to improve alcohol care in Scottish hospitals

T he Scottish Government needs to take urgent action to improve hospital care and support for people with alcohol issues, says a consensus statement from Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems( SHAAP), the Royal College of Nursing( RCN) Scotland and the Royal College of Psychiatrists( RCPsych) Scotland. In a follow-up to research carried out by SHAAP two years ago, an FOI request submitted in August found an‘ inconsistent patchwork’ of hospital support despite the country’ s high level of alcohol-related hospital admissions. While some Scottish acute hospitals provided dedi cated nursing teams to support people with alcohol issues, others – par ticu larly in rural areas like Orkney and Shetland – did not. However, the evidence shows that these multi-disciplinary alcohol care teams( ACT) can improve the quality of care and reduce readmission rates, says the statement.

Just two Scottish health boards had a multidisciplinary team in their acute hospitals led by a senior clinician, while eight had arrangements‘ similar’ to an alcohol care team – such as a combined substance use team providing support for alcohol patients. Most teams only worked during the week, and only one board had a dedicated outreach team for people who regularly attended A & E for alcohol-related reasons.
‘ Everyone deserves access to the same level of treatment, no matter where they live,’ said SHAAP chair Dr Alastair MacGilchrist.‘ The delivery of ACTs varies greatly across the country. While some health boards operate a seven-day service, others have none at all. Alcohol Care Teams are a tested, cost-effective way of getting support for people with alcohol problems so that they can
‘ The delivery of ACTs varies greatly across the country.’
DR ALASTAIR MACGILCHRIST
reduce intake and in many cases embark on a recovery journey.’
The Scottish Government de clared the country’ s level of alcohol harm a public health emergency four years ago, but an Audit Scotland report from last year stated that it had been‘ slow to progress’ national strategies to tackle alcohol issues, with the country’ s ongoing drug deaths crisis‘ shifting attention’ away from alcohol harm. While the latest alcohol-specific death figures for Scotland, released last month, recorded a five-year low of 1,185 the previous year’ s total was the highest since 2008.
Statement at www. shaap. org. uk

Problem gambling‘ quadruples’ suicide risk in young people

Local News

DEEP DIVE Nine Forward Trust staff and volunteers met at Headcorn Aerodrome in Kent last month to take part in a money-raising 12,000-foot jump.‘ Being part of the skydive was a way of giving back and celebrating the amazing people who have made the leap into recovery, showing that anything is possible with great people behind you,’ said inclusion practitioner Kelly.
SUSTAINING SUCCESS Via Harrow has now sustained its hepatitis C micro-elimination status for over a year –‘ an incredible milestone’, the service states.‘ Their dedication and hard work in combatting this virus is truly commendable,’ said Harrow council senior public health commissioner Oasis Azeez-Harris.‘ Via Harrow’ s efforts do not only bring hope to many but have also set a shining example for others to follow.’
PROBLEM GAMBLERS face triple the suicide risk after a year – and quadruple the risk after four years – when compared to people who experience no gambling harms, says a report by the University of Bristol.
The findings are based on analysis of data from the ongoing Children of the 90s study, which has been following the health and development of 14,000 pregnant women and their families for more than three decades. They show that problem gambling is‘ clearly linked to a marked and long-lasting increase in suicide attempts among young people in the UK’, says the university. The future suicidality link
was‘ most stark’ among 20-yearolds, where there was a 20 per cent increase in suicide attempts for every increment on the Problem Gambling Severity Index.
The fact that the project tracked people from birth meant that researchers could‘ look at the longterm impacts of problem gambling and could rule out alternative explanations that hinder previous studies, such as that people might be drawn to problem gambling as a way of escaping pre-existing suicidal feelings’, said lead author Olly Bastiani.
A study published earlier this year reported that the families of people who’ d taken their own lives
as a result of gambling-related harm were‘ routinely denied’ inquests that properly considered the role of gambling in the deaths( DDN, February, page 5). Even when families went to‘ considerable lengths’ to submit detailed evidence of the gambling to the coroner this would often be accepted without comment or ignored altogether, the report stated, meaning that opportunities to prevent future deaths and inform debates about gambling harm were being missed.
The relationship between Problem Gambling Severity Index( PGSI) scores and suicidality published in the journal Addiction https:// www. addictionjournal. org /
GRATEFUL REFLECTIONS Around 300 people attended Abbeycare’ s annual recovery gathering in Renfrew, which included presentations by Dr David Best and musician and broadcaster Darren McGarvey, a former Abbeycare client.‘ It is an extraordinary thing to listen to people reflecting on their journey back to health, surrounded by the love and gratitude of the families and friends they nearly left behind,’ said director Liam Mehigan.
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