Readiness to change and reasons for intended reduction of alcohol consumption in emergency department versus trauma population.

Introduction: The primary objective was to identify the most common reasons for intending to cut back on alcohol use, in emergency department (ED) and trauma patient populations. The secondary objective was to determine the association between reason to cut back on alcohol and education level.

Methods: We conducted the study at a level one trauma center in California between 2008 and 2012.

Assessment of alcohol use patterns among spanish-speaking patients.

Objective: The objective of this study was to assess drinking patterns of Spanish-speaking patients using a bilingual computerized alcohol screening and brief intervention (CASI) tablet computer equipped with the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT).

Methods: This retrospective study was conducted in a tertiary university hospital emergency department (ED) between 2006 and 2010. Data from 1816 Spanish-speaking ED patients were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the chi-square test for independence, and the Kruskal-Wallis rank sum test for comparisons using quantitative variables.

Increased detection of alcohol consumption and at-risk drinking with computerized alcohol screening.

Background: The impact of alcohol use has been widely studied and is considered a public health issue. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) recommends Screening and Brief Intervention and Referral Treatment (SBIRT), but the actual practice in the Emergency Department (ED) is constrained due to limited provider time and financial resources.

Objectives: To assess the effectiveness of alcohol screening using Computerized Alcohol Screening and brief Intervention (CASI) compared to alcohol screening by triage nurse during Medical Screening Examination (MSE) in the ED.

Assessment of readiness to change and relationship to AUDIT score in a trauma population utilizing computerized alcohol screening and brief intervention.

Trauma patient readiness-to-change score and its relationship to the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) score were assessed in addition to the feasibility of computerized alcohol screening and brief intervention (CASI). A bilingual computerized tablet for trauma patients was utilized and the data were analyzed using Stata. Twenty-five percent of 1145 trauma patients drank more than recommended and 4% were dependent.