Abstract
Aim: To test the effectiveness of a brief alcohol intervention among non-dependent general hospital inpatients with alcohol problems, delivered by either a specialized liaison service or hospital physicians. Method: All inpatients of 29 wards from four general hospitals of one region in Germany were screened for alcohol problems (n = 14,332). Of those screening positive, 595 patients were included in a randomized controlled group design using a time-frame. Patients with alcohol dependence were not considered in this study. Patients received Motivational Interviewing based counselling either by a specialized liaison service, by hospital physicians trained under routine conditions or received hospital treatment as usual without additional counselling. One year later, alcohol consumption, motivation and well-being were assessed. Sample survey analyses and generalized estimating equations were conducted. Results: At baseline, the three groups differed regarding motivation, with higher motivation among the controls. At follow-up, the groups did not differ regarding alcohol consumption, alcohol-related problems and well-being. All groups decreased their alcohol consumption significantly. Regarding motivation, longitudinal analyses revealed significant interaction effects of time and intervention (p < 0.05), indicating a stronger increase of readiness to change drinking and a less profound drop of readiness to seek help among those who received intervention compared to the controls. Conclusion: The intervention was not effective in reducing alcohol consumption or in increasing well-being 12 months after hospitalization. It had a positive effect on readiness to change drinking and on readiness to seek formal help for alcohol problems. The intervention groups compensated their lag of motivation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Drug and Alcohol Dependence |
| Volume | 93 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Pages (from-to) | 233-243 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| ISSN | 0376-8716 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 01.03.2008 |
Funding
Role of funding source: Funding for this study was provided by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (01EB0120, 01EB0420), the Social Ministry of the State of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (IX 311a 406.68.43.05) and the Alfried Krupp von Bohlen and Halbach Foundation. The funding sources had no further role in study design; in the collection, analysis and interpretation of data; in the writing of the report; or in the decision to submit the paper for publication.
Research Areas and Centers
- Academic Focus: Center for Brain, Behavior and Metabolism (CBBM)
