Referral to an Alcohol Care Team during a hospital admission
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A longitudinal observational study of patients referred to the Alcohol Care Team during an admission to Southampton General Hospital
IRAS ID
204165
Contact name
Sophie Williams
Contact email
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 2 months, 31 days
Research summary
The University Hospital Southampton (UHS) Alcohol Care Team (ACT): A longitudinal observational study.
78% of the cost of alcohol misuse to the NHS derives from hospital-based care; in Southampton, the number of alcohol-related admissions is higher than the national average. Admission to hospital provides a vital access point for patients to get help with unhealthy alcohol use. ACTs have been established in many major UK hospitals to offer this support and research has demonstrated their role in improving outcomes.
However, there is little documented evidence about the UHS ACT and the role it plays in the lives of patients – and even less is known about the long-term outcomes in this group after they leave hospital. This study aims to address these important gaps.
The primary research question is:
What happens to the drinking behaviour of patients six months after referral to an ACT during an unscheduled hospital admission?The secondary research questions are:
1. What is the demographic profile of a cohort of adults referred to the ACT during an inpatient admission at SGH?
2. What is the drinking profile of the cohort at baseline?
3. What is the role of the Alcohol Care Team for this cohort of patients?
4. Are certain personal characteristics and variables (including demographics, psychological distress and motivation/readiness to change) related to drinking behaviour at the time of a hospital admission, and do they predict drinking behaviour six months after discharge?This study will use structured interviews with patients using validated questionnaires: the ‘AUDIT’, ‘TLFB’ and ‘LDQ’ for levels of alcohol use/dependency, the ‘SOCRATES’ and ‘RTCQ’ for motivation/readiness to change and the ‘HADS’ for levels of psychological distress. A tailor-made questionnaire will gather relevant demographic information. Participants will be interviewed on two occasions: 1) in hospital, 2) 6-months post-discharge.
This study will provide information about the role and work of one ACT and the patients it seeks to support. This will help optimise the management of patients with the aim of improving their health and reducing alcohol-related admissions. Understanding individual risk factors for poor outcome can help shape the development of tailored interventions.
REC name
HSC REC A
REC reference
16/NI/0100
Date of REC Opinion
3 Jun 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion