A National Directory of Drug Treatment Centers and Alcohol Treatment Centers, Therapists and Specialists. A free, simple directory providing assistance and guidance for those seeking help regarding alcohol addiction, drug addiction, dependency and many other conditions that affect the mind, body and soul.
Call 888-647-0579 to speak with an alcohol or drug abuse counselor.

Who Answers?

Drink misuse ‘costs each Scot GBP900’

The impact of Scotland’s drink culture on the health service was laid bare yesterday when it emerged that the cost of treating only one person with a moderately severe alcohol-related head injury is more than £34,000.

The extraordinary figure was released by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Scotland’s biggest health board. The sum covers only acute care, and not costs associated with rehabilitation. NHS officials calculated the figure after an independent report suggested that alcohol misuse costs the Scottish economy up to £4.64 billion annually, more than double the £2.25 billion figure previously used by the government.

Alastair Ireland, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde’s clinical director for emergency medicine, said the cost of treating alcohol-related emergencies ranged from £800 for admitting a patient to hospital for a day or two, to more than £34,000 for complex head injuries. He also said that about 10 to 15 per cent of patients also had injuries that were so serious that they never recovered, and required round-the-clock nursing for life.

“I’d say that in 95 per cent of head injuries, alcohol is the significant factor, whether it is by a fall or assault,” he said. “There is obviously a cost to society, but for us as clinicians, we see first hand the cost to individuals in terms of suffering to them and their families.” Dr Ireland’s comments came as a report by economists at the University of York estimated that alcohol misuse in Scotland cost the public purse between £2.48 billion and £4.64 billion a year. According to the report, if the midpoint figure of £3.56 billion were used, alcohol abuse represents a cost to each adult north of the Border of £900 a year.

Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish Health Secretary, said that the figures were frightening. She said the sharp rise was partly the result of different methodology, but said that the problems associated with alcohol abuse were increasing. “If you look at alcoholic liver disease statistics, they tell you it is getting worse … £3.5 billion is too high a cost to be paying for alcohol issues, and it reinforces the need to take action.”

Ms Sturgeon appealed to opposition parties to support the SNP’s proposals for minimum pricing. She is hopeful that a combination of public pressure, and support for the measure among experts, could lead to a change of heart. A broad coalition of health professionals and drinks industry figures now support the move.

“I think they are in party political positions, and this should be above party politics,” she said. “An analogy is the smoking ban. As [we were] the Opposition [when it was proposed], the easy thing would have been to oppose it, but we backed it, and I think that is what should be done now.” However, her Opposition colleagues at Holyrood rejected her appeal.

Jackie Baillie, the health spokeswoman for Scottish Labour, said that minimum pricing was untested and possibly illegal. She urged ministers to engage in a debate over alternatives. Robert Brown, justice spokesman for the Scottish Liberal Democrats, said that tackling irresponsible promotions and the sale of alcohol as a loss-leader would be more effective.

The University of York report used figures from 2007 to work out the cost of alcohol misuse across areas including healthcare, social care, crime, productivity and premature death. Under the £3.56 billion figure, healthcare costs were £268.8 million, 7.5 per cent of the total; crime costs were £727 million, or 20 per cent; and the loss of productivity was £865.7 million, or 24 per cent. The “human” cost of premature death, which was not included in previous estimates of alcohol misuse, accounted for £856.7 million.

John Neilson, Assistant Chief Constable of Strathclyde Police and a national anti-violence co-ordinator, said that minimum pricing would be the single most effective way of reducing alcohol-related crime. “We need to challenge the heavy binge-drinking culture in Scotland or we’re never going to move on as a country,” he said. Dr Ireland agreed that minimum pricing would be effective, saying that those without money in their pockets would stop.

Behind the story: A head injury

The first stop is the resuscitation department, at a cost of £1,000. Then a CT scan at £350. An ambulance to a specialist neurological unit is £75, three days in intensive care is £9,000, and further treatment on wards over the next three weeks is another £23,000.

By the time a patient with a complex alcohol-related head injury is discharged, the cost to taxpayers has risen to more than £34,000.

“The burden on the entire NHS system is enormous,” said Alistair Ireland, clinical director for emergency medicine at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

He said alcohol injuries were caused by falls, fights and chronic harmful drinking, creating long-term conditions such as liver disease.

The Royal Infirmary in Glasgow alone saw 5,000 alcohol-related head injuries, 1,000 of which required admission.

Dr Ireland said that the answer was better education and minimum pricing.

source: Times Online

More Treatment & Detox Articles

Boozing Blunts Ability to Read Faces

Heavy drinking can affect the ability to recognize other people’s facial emotions, a new study has found. Researchers used functional MRI to monitor brain activity in 15 abstinent long-term alcoholics while they looked at images of faces with positive or negative emotional expressions. The brain scans revealed decreased activation in the amygdala and hippocampus, regions….

Continue reading

Binge drinking raises stroke risk

Binge drinking more than triples a man’s risk of dying from a stroke. Researchers studied 6,291 Korean people aged 55 years or older to examine the association between binge drinking and risks of mortality due to all causes of death with a focus on cerebrovascular disease. It was noted that 59 percent of adults reported….

Continue reading

Signs and Symptoms of alcohol addiction

Alcohol addiction is a problem largely related to the physiological dependency of a person on alcohol. Therefore, getting rid of the alcohol addiction is not a simple task. Sudden withdrawal from alcohol can be very unpleasant for the addict and can lead to medical consequences, therefore, proper methods needs to be adopted when treating alcohol….

Continue reading

Privacy at Substance Abuse Treatment Centers

Going to substance abuse treatment centers can be beneficial to your overall health and well-being. These facilities are specifically designed to work with individuals who have addictions so that they can live better and more productive lives that do not necessarily revolve around their addictions. If you are considering checking yourself into this type of….

Continue reading

Alcoholism in the Jewish community

It’s not easy to be a recovering alcoholic who is also Jewish. It’s hard enough for someone to admit having a problem with alcohol, let alone having to buck long-standing cultural and religions traditions to find sobriety. Helping people overcome these unique challenges is the goal of Jewish Family Service (JFS). With offices located in….

Continue reading

Where do calls go?

Calls to numbers on a specific treatment center listing will be routed to that treatment center. Calls to any general helpline will be answered or returned by one of the treatment providers listed, each of which is a paid advertiser: ARK Behavioral Health, Recovery Helpline, Alli Addiction Services.

By calling the helpline you agree to the terms of use. We do not receive any commission or fee that is dependent upon which treatment provider a caller chooses. There is no obligation to enter treatment.

I NEED TO TALK TO SOMEONE NOWI NEED TO TALK TO SOMEONE NOW 888-647-0579Response time about 1 min | Response rate 100%
Who Answers?