Brief Intervention and Screening Tool Training Project
| Description | GPs, practice staff and A&E staff are trained on how to implement brief interventions in primary care. |
|---|---|
| Setting | General practices and A&E departments |
| Populationting | Patients with alcohol problems from 56 practices and two A&E departments. |
| Intervention summary | Training provided for GPs, practice staff and A&E staff on how to use the identified screening tool and how to implement brief interventions within a primary care setting. |
| Outcome Summary | 120 people accessed the training in the first year. |
| Startup Cost | |
| Running Cost | Year 1 = £19 000 Year 2 = £18 445 Total costs of the two year project = £37 445 |
| Funding | The project was funded by the Primary Care Trust. |
| Started | November 2005 |
| Ended | November 2007 |
| Location | North Cumbria, Cumbria, England |
| Contact |
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Background
This project was set up by the Cumbria Alcohol and Drug Advisory Service (CADAS). CADAS is a countrywide service that started 26 years ago. It provides information, education and one to one counselling for people who have alcohol problems and/or their families. We also offer community awareness courses on alcohol misuse. A year ago we started this new project to train GPs, their practice staff, and A&E staff on how to implement brief interventions within primary care. The Primary Care Trust (PCT) in North Cumbria approached us about offering a training service and we put a bid in for tender.
What is the problem you are trying to solve?
Patients were not being screened by GPs or by staff working in A&E departments. We want to improve the levels of awareness with regards to safe drinking and alcohol misuse by getting more people with alcohol issues screened earlier and offering them appropriate interventions and treatment.
What local organisations are involved?
North Cumbria PCT is involved.
How many people are running this project and who are they?
One trainer and one line manager are running this project.
What local population are you targeting?
We are targeting patients with alcohol problems from 56 practices and two A&E departments within North Cumbria PCT.
How many people are you targeting?
120 people accessed the service in the first year.
Interventions
What interventions are you using to address the problem?
We provide training for GPs, practice staff and A&E staff on how to use the identified screening tool and how to implement brief interventions within a primary care setting.
Is the project design based on evidence? If so, please state reference.
Yes, the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England 1 .
Outcome
What outcomes or planned outcomes are you measuring?
We are monitoring the number of people who access the training.
Do you have any outcomes or results yet? If so, what are they?
The total number of people accessing the training in the first year was 120.
Is your project relevant to a government target or guideline?
The government’s white paper, Choosing Health 2 , and the Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England 1
Feedback
What obstacles did you have to overcome to set up this project?
The regulatory nature of protected learning time for GPs restricts the availability of the project delivery. There was resistance from the A&E departments to access this training.
What have you learned about the project so far?
Many GPs and their practice staff willingly entered into the spirit of the project.
What would you do differently?
We are confident that our approach has been effective with regards to the annual outputs and outcomes.
References:
- Cabinet Office. Alcohol Harm Reduction Strategy for England. 2004. Available at http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/strategy/downloads/su/alcohol/pdf/CabOffce%20AlcoholHar.pdf (accessed 17 April 2007).
- Department of Health. Choosing Health: Making Healthy Choices Easier. 2004. Available at www.dh.gov.uk (search for 4135, accessed 17 April 2007).