The survey was carried out by two EPHA members, the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Nursing. It asked gastroenterologists, hepatologists, acute physicians and nurses for their expert opinion on Government policy initiatives and national strategies to tackle alcohol-related harm, the provision of service for people with alcohol-related health problems and the scale of alcohol-related health harms in their particular clinical environment.
Significant findings were :
84% of respondents thought that public health campaigns were not effective.
73% felt action on low priced alcohol was needed to tackle alcohol related problems.
90% believed that all alcohol products should be labelled with unit information and sensible drinking guidelines
71% believed that greater investment in treatment services was needed.
81% thought that if alcohol was more expensive, there would be a decrease in consumption.
Another issue highlighted by the survey was serious under-investment in staff and services for alcohol treatment, including a lack of specialist nurses. 88% of the clinicians surveyed said funding had not kept up with demand or that services were suffering from under-investment.
Professor Ian Gilmore, President of the Royal College of Physicians and Chair of the Alcohol Health Alliance said :
"While informing the public through health campaigns is important, these findings shows that front line doctors and nurses treating patients with drink problems do not believe that this enough to reverse our binge drinking culture and must be linked to tough actions on cheap alcohol and round the clock availability."
Dr Peter Carter, Chief Executive & General Secretary of the Royal College of Nursing (RCN), said :
"Nurses have said time and time again that the Government must take more drastic action to tackle the growing issue of alcohol misuse. Better regulation of the labelling, sale and advertising of alcoholic drinks, as well as widespread education on the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption, is needed to curb this significant problem. The RCN again calls for the introduction of a single mandatory code that applies to the whole alcohol industry to prevent retailers from engaging in unscrupulous practices which encourage consumers to drink to excess."
EPHA Comments
This survey underlines the need for a multi-pronged approach to tackling alcohol-related harm. Public health campaigns need to be integrated into a more comprehensive policy approach, and lessons from the tobacco control community can and should be taken on board.
According to the World Bank, price increases for tobacco products are the single most effective intervention to prevent smoking. This was also recognised by the Commission when it included a public health objective in its taxation policy. Taxation now forms part of an overall strategy to reduce tobacco consumption. A similar move, whether it involves higher taxation or the fixing of a minimum price, should be considered at a European level for alcoholic beverages. WHO recommendations on alcohol have consistently pinpointed pricing policies as one of the most effective measures to reduce consumption and harm. Studies have shown that price increases lead not only to reduced frequency of drinking but also to smaller quantities drunk in each drinking event.
The costs of alcohol abuse in terms of damage to individual health, third-party harm or vandalism are on the rise and EPHA urges the EU institutions to take action.
For further information
Royal College of Physicians Press Release
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