Assessing alcohol use and smoking among patients admitted to the medical ward.

Background: The objective of the study was to investigate the incidence of risky alcohol consumption in patients admitted to medical wards, and to examine possible differences in how smoking habits and alcohol consumption are assessed and monitored by health personnel.

Material And Method: The study was conducted on medical wards at Southern Norway Hospital Trust in autumn 2013. Out of 998 patients who were successively admitted, 536 were included in the analysis. A questionnaire was used to survey smoking and risky alcohol consumption, and to determine whether patients could remember being asked and advised about these during their hospitalisation period.

Results: Fifty patients (9.3%) fulfilled the criteria for risky alcohol consumption. A lower percentage reported having been asked about their drinking habits than about their smoking habits (44% versus 62%, p < 0.001). Compared to those who smoked, a lower percentage of those with risky alcohol consumption reported that they had been recommended to reduce their consumption or quit; 10% vs. 29% (p = 0.009).

Interpretation: The patients' experience was that they were asked less about their alcohol consumption than about smoking. They also reported receiving less health-promoting advice in relation to alcohol. Doctors should be more conscious of including alcohol consumption when taking regular case histories.