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01 Jan 10
10:34
Joined:
Date Joined:
05 Apr 06
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/8433935.stm
The cost of treating the growing number of people drinking heavily threatens to cripple NHS hospitals, warn experts.
If the trend continues the burden will be unsustainable, the Royal College of Physicians and NHS Confederation say.
With a quarter of England's population consuming hazardous amounts, alcohol addiction already costs the NHS more than £2.7 billion a year.
Services need work together to avert a crisis, with the emphasis on prevention, they say in a joint report.
Currently, most of the money is being spent on hospital and ambulance services.
This burden is no longer sustainable
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians
But hospital care alone cannot solve the problem, the report says.
Increasing out-of-hospital provision could be more cost effective, it says.
This would include GPs screening and counselling their patients on alcohol misuse.
Trials suggest that brief advice from a GP, or practice nurse, leads to one in eight people reducing their drinking to within sensible levels.
This, says the report, compares well with smoking cessation, where only one in 20 change their behaviour.
Changing the way alcohol-related services are delivered could save hospitals 1,000 bed days and Primary Care Trusts up to £650,000 a year, experts estimate.
Breaking point
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said: "The nation's growing addiction to alcohol is putting an immense strain on health services, especially in hospitals, costing the NHS over £2.7 billion each year."And this sum has doubled in under five years.
"This burden is no longer sustainable," he said.
"The role of the NHS should not just be about treating the consequences of alcohol related-harm but also about active prevention, early intervention, and working in partnership with services in local communities to raise awareness of alcohol-related harm."
Steve Barnett, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: "We hope this report helps to outline the scale of the problems facing the NHS and acts as a warning that if we carry on drinking in the way that we are currently, the bar bill will be paid in worse health and a health system struggling to cope."
A Department of Health spokesperson welcomed the report: "We agree the level of alcohol-related hospital admissions, crime, and deaths are still unacceptable.
"We are now seeing a real will by the NHS for change and improvement in alcohol services.
"Two thirds of PCTs have adopted reducing alcohol-related hospital admissions as a local priority for the first time.
"The department is providing Primary Care Trusts with the support, tools and incentives to deliver alcohol services in their own areas effectively according to local needs."
The cost of treating the growing number of people drinking heavily threatens to cripple NHS hospitals, warn experts.
If the trend continues the burden will be unsustainable, the Royal College of Physicians and NHS Confederation say.
With a quarter of England's population consuming hazardous amounts, alcohol addiction already costs the NHS more than £2.7 billion a year.
Services need work together to avert a crisis, with the emphasis on prevention, they say in a joint report.
Currently, most of the money is being spent on hospital and ambulance services.
This burden is no longer sustainable
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians
But hospital care alone cannot solve the problem, the report says.
Increasing out-of-hospital provision could be more cost effective, it says.
This would include GPs screening and counselling their patients on alcohol misuse.
Trials suggest that brief advice from a GP, or practice nurse, leads to one in eight people reducing their drinking to within sensible levels.
This, says the report, compares well with smoking cessation, where only one in 20 change their behaviour.
Changing the way alcohol-related services are delivered could save hospitals 1,000 bed days and Primary Care Trusts up to £650,000 a year, experts estimate.
Breaking point
Professor Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians, said: "The nation's growing addiction to alcohol is putting an immense strain on health services, especially in hospitals, costing the NHS over £2.7 billion each year."And this sum has doubled in under five years.
"This burden is no longer sustainable," he said.
"The role of the NHS should not just be about treating the consequences of alcohol related-harm but also about active prevention, early intervention, and working in partnership with services in local communities to raise awareness of alcohol-related harm."
Steve Barnett, the chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: "We hope this report helps to outline the scale of the problems facing the NHS and acts as a warning that if we carry on drinking in the way that we are currently, the bar bill will be paid in worse health and a health system struggling to cope."
A Department of Health spokesperson welcomed the report: "We agree the level of alcohol-related hospital admissions, crime, and deaths are still unacceptable.
"We are now seeing a real will by the NHS for change and improvement in alcohol services.
"Two thirds of PCTs have adopted reducing alcohol-related hospital admissions as a local priority for the first time.
"The department is providing Primary Care Trusts with the support, tools and incentives to deliver alcohol services in their own areas effectively according to local needs."
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Replies: 37
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what a surprise!
allow me to make another bold prediction. the ignorant population of britain will continue to ignore this kind of report until the situation gets so bad the government is forced to make alcohol illegal for the good of public health. than there will be tyrany! |
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I'm sorry let me make a even better prediction.
The Government will increase the taxes on Alcohol like they have with petrol to 'Try and stop people drinking to excess' just like 'Try and stop people using their car to save the planet' Its all**and just another way to screw you whilst sounding like their doing YOU the favour. |
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as we said once they finish with the smokers they will start on the drinkers next probably the obese,then sports injuries etc
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The smoking ban was gonna save the NHS countless billions, they could pay for it with that...
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doesn't alcohol tax bring in more than this. Wait for the new alcohol taxes in the budget.
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no you have to diagnose all crooks with mental illness so they dont go to prison and also ivf for childless couples
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What I find interesting, is most people, myself included, completely ignore the Governments Alcohol limit warnings. It is easy to drink 1 weeks advised maximium units and not even be that drunk. Either the limits are deliberately set way too low, or there going to be a lot of people in big trouble.
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Maybe it should be illegal to have an alchohol blood level of greater than say........
4 pints 6 pints 8 pints 10 pints ...which one.... Aim would be to save on battered wives/husbands , fights in pubs on streets etc |
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THE PLAGUE OF ALCOHOL IS IN ITS INFANCY WAIT TILL THIS GENERATION ADS TO IT,YOU AINT SEEN NOTHING YET
HAPPY NEW YEAR |
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Too true Do Wah........
Happy New Year..... Alcohol is a poison........ |
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it is but we all drink it
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tt
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These medical people get on my wick. Its like they don't wanna see sick people. What they gunna do then?
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3pints a day is 42 units a week. I am sure that is not particularly unhealthy.
My guess is that (normal strength real ale, with v.few chemicals in - preferably none) 2 pints at lunch and 4 in the evening 7 times a week isn't particularly unhealthy - that is 84 units a week. Most doctors would say you are on a suicide mission drinking that much , but i wouldn't have thought so. But who am I to argue with the scientists? If you do reasonable exercise and eat healthily (lots of fruit and veg, not too much meat) then I'm sure you could live to a ripe old age. |
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Alcohol's not a drug ffs. It's a drink.
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I blame all the non-smokers who fill up every pub in the country on every night of the year.
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If they want to raise tax to fund the NHS (which will be needed with or without alcohol related illnesses, due to people living longer, etc) then they need to ringfence tax to pay for the NHS.
For example, they should say that 6p of every pond raised by Income Tax (or whatever) goes straight to the NHS. They get no more or no less than this amount. Then if they want to raise money, they change that figure to 7 pence, and so on. But they don't want to do that because they will use the NHS to raise taxes generally, then spend it elsewhere. |
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The government should not allow adverts that glamorise the use of alcohol, you only have to watch a few hours of tv and young people will think alcohol is some sort miracle drink.
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They need to raise the pension age to pay for the NHS imo.
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Alcohol is a miracle drink.
Some of the time. |
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Unfortunately in this country, in most circles, anyone under the age of 40 who does not get drunk and make a fool of themselves soon becomes a social pariah.
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I don't think that is necessarily true Barry. In fact I don't think it is true at all.
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Barry Conway 01 Jan 16:49
Unfortunately in this country, in most circles, anyone under the age of 40 who does not get drunk and make a fool of themselves soon becomes a social pariah. positively4thsteet 01 Jan 16:50 I don't think that is necessarily true Barry. In fact I don't think it is true at all. I think that it's true to an extent. People naturally self-select the people that they spend time with. A lot of people who stop drinking tend to drift into different social circles, whose activities revolve less around pubs and clubs. When you're sober, most people that have drunk more than 6 pints or so can become quite tedious. |
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Well I work for the council, and no one seems to drink. Have worked i a few places like that actually. Also worked in a place where if you didn't go down the pub on a friday with the boss and put in the kitty, then he would not be happy at all.
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1 HALF bottle of whisky at the local shop = 9 QUID
1 FULL bottle of the same whisky at the same shop = 10 QUID (On offer, so only if you buy two) What do you do?? You buy the 2 bottles for 20 quid and end up drinking a lot more than you originally planned... Why don't they sell smaller bottles at a realistic price??? Fags are not sold in this fashion!! Some of us are getting ourselves into serious trouble slowly but surely in the future..Look at the state of Russia with the Vodka (In the news today) |
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Simple answer is to make off licence sales a lot more expensive so people would be encouraged to drink on licensed premises where there is supervision.
Trouble is as long as the supermarkets have the Government in their pocket it's never going to happen. |
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Perhaps the Scottish idea of having a minimum legal; price per unit of alcohol might help.
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We need to learn from other countries. The govt will do the usual and raise prices. Then us lot will do our usual and start the bootlegging etc..
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8432271.stm |
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My guess is that (normal strength real ale, with v.few chemicals in - preferably none) 2 pints at lunch and 4 in the evening 7 times a week isn't particularly unhealthy - that is 84 units a week. Most doctors would say you are on a suicide mission drinking that much , but i wouldn't have thought so. But who am I to argue with the scientists?
Quite HNY btw rob :) |
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Told you so. First they came for the smokers. Soon have pubs that only sell microwaved dinners and a bottle of vimto.
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but food that came from the microwave might be harmful? and ought to be taxed too!
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They want us all at home ,couldn't give a fack about the social part of this sh1tty life. Tax the smokers and drinkers to the hilt but drive them to their own houses out the way.
Sat at home drinking off-licence booze and not causing trouble on the streets draining the resources of the police with fighting, drink driving etc. |
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bix 01 Jan 21:48
Simple answer is to make off licence sales a lot more expensive so people would be encouraged to drink on licensed premises where there is supervision. Trouble is as long as the supermarkets have the Government in their pocket it's never going to happen. Absolutely bang on. The boss of my local says about underage drunks "I know that over 99% of my alcohol sales are by people old enough. The supermarkets can't say that." |
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*are to people
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He'll also refuse to serve them when they've had enough.
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what a suprise for this to be released on new years day! you couldnt make it up
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Maybe it should be illegal to have an alchohol blood level of greater than say........
4 pints 6 pints 8 pints 10 pints ...which one.... Aim would be to save on battered wives/husbands , fights in pubs on streets etc |