Doctor accuses Lenihan of fuelling alcohol problems
A LEADING accident and emergency consultant has described the Budget's reduction in the price of alcohol as a retrograde step for public health.
Dr Gerry Lane, who features in TV adverts promoting road safety on both sides of the border, said that making alcohol cheaper was sending out the wrong message. "Alcohol is too cheap in our community. It is too easily available. It has saturated our petrol stations, our corner shops, everywhere.
"By making it cheaper we are sending the wrong message. It is a retrograde step from the public health point of view, however logical it is from an economic point of view," he said.
Dr Lane, who is based at the accident and emergency department at Letterkenny General, was speaking as the HSE launches a new initiative promoting alcohol awareness at emergency departments in Letterkenny, Waterford, Naas, and Cork.
From Wednesday, patients attending at the emergency unit at Letterkenny will be asked about their drinking habits.
Men will be asked how often they have had seven or more drinks or three-and-a-half pints, on a single occasion, while for women the amount will be five or more. "If the answer is 'I do that once a month' that means there will probably be a brief intervention, where staff will indicate that this is potentially harmful. If the person says he is doing it on a weekly basis, then we suggest they should think about talking to somebody.
"But if somebody is drinking an unsafe amount daily or almost daily, then we would offer them some referral possibilities," said Dr Lane.
Risks
The aim of the initiative is to intervene at an early stage and reduce the number of people progressing to alcohol dependence. He pointed to international research which shows that drinking more than 17 standard drinks a week or eight-and-a-half pints increases accident and health risks.
Dr Lane added: "I know I am sounding like the Grinch here, but I'm not saying alcohol should be banned.
"It has a useful function in moderate amounts. If people moderated their behaviour and got over their ambivalence, emergency departments and hospitals in general would be quieter, safer places."
- Anita Guidera
Irish Independent
