Prescribing or dispensing medication represents the best opportunity for GPs and pharmacists to engage older people in alcohol-related clinical conversations

Wilkinson, Celia; Dare, Julie; French, Michelle; McDermott, Marie; Lo, Johnny; Allsop, Steve

doi:10.1111/ijpp.12255

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…This finding contrasts with previous research, that has suggested health concerns are a common reason for reducing alcohol consumption as people age (see, for example Britton and Bell , Wilkinson et al . ), While some respondents did discuss personal health issues they believed were linked to alcohol, or indicated their doctor had recommended they reduce consumption, at least some tended to regard their drinking choices as defensible, by, for example, suggesting that positive health behaviours (e.g. exercise) minimised risks associated with alcohol consumption.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Women of my age tend to drink”: the social construction of alcohol use by Australian and Danish women aged 50–70 years

Dare

Wilkinson

Traumer

et al. 2019

Sociology Health & Illness

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In Australia and Denmark, women aged 50–70 years are more likely than younger women to consume alcohol at levels that exceed national low risk drinking guidelines. To explore and possibly help explain this sociocultural shift in patterns of alcohol use, this research investigated the social construction of alcohol use amongst 49 women (25 in Northern Denmark, 24 in Western Australia) aged 50–69 years. The women viewed drinking as normal and acceptable. While some women reported reducing their drinking due to health concerns, others neutralised alcohol‐related health risks through compensatory behaviours including exercise. Such constructions arguably serve to sustain at‐risk drinking amongst some women. Our research highlights that interventions to minimise alcohol‐related health risks amongst middle‐aged and young‐old women should acknowledge that women's social construction of their drinking practices may prioritise subjective experiences of “being in control” while drinking, over biomedical understandings of the health impacts of alcohol.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Women of my age tend to drink”: the social construction of alcohol use by Australian and Danish women aged 50–70 years

Dare

Wilkinson

Traumer

et al. 2019

Sociology Health & Illness

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This is a significant knowledge gap, given that older people are more likely than younger people to be on multiple medications which increase their risk of alcohol-related adverse reactions. [20] Leveraging this professional activity to engage older clients in alcoholrelated health discussions (ARHD) may therefore represent an innovative health promotion strategy. [18] Many older people view community pharmacists, along with general practitioners, as their preferred source of information about potential alcohol-medication interactions, [19] and as many take one or more medications, [9] they routinely visit their community pharmacy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Indeed, recent research found that older people (>60 years) were most amenable to receiving health advice about alcohol while medicines were being dispensed. [20] Leveraging this professional activity to engage older clients in alcoholrelated health discussions (ARHD) may therefore represent an innovative health promotion strategy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Community pharmacists require additional support to develop capacity in delivering alcohol-related health information to older adults

Dare

Wilkinson

Garlepp³

et al. 2016

International Journal of Pharmacy Practice

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Routine professional practice including dispensing medicine and home medicine reviews may provide valuable opportunities to engage older clients in alcohol-related discussions. However, limited knowledge concerning appropriate strategies to assist older clients reduce their alcohol consumption, coupled with limited skills and confidence among community pharmacists in raising sensitive alcohol-related issues with clients, suggest the need for specific alcohol-related training and support.

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“… 35 A more recent survey of 188 adults aged 60–89 years showed that very few recalled a discussion with their pharmacists in the previous 12 months about alcohol use, but much higher percentages recalled discussions with their GPs. 36 Of significance was that 50% of the men and 63% of the women believed it appropriate for pharmacists to ask about alcohol use, showing a need to increase community pharmacists’ awareness of the need to discuss alcohol use with consumers.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pharmacy-based alcohol-misuse services: current perspectives

Hattingh

Tait

2018

IPRP

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ContextGlobally, the use of alcohol is a leading cause of mortality and morbidity. Opportunistic screening and brief interventions (SBIs) have been shown to be effective in reducing alcohol consumption in certain primary care settings and provide a means of reaching some of those who do not seek treatment for alcohol-related problems. Further, community pharmacies have the potential to reach consumers at an early stage of their alcohol use and incorporate intervention and advice into their role in providing medications.AimThe purpose of this review was to inform pharmacists and stakeholders of the evidence base for SBI in community pharmacy settings. To date, there has been limited research on the effectiveness of alcohol SBI in community pharmacies, with a systemic review only identifying two randomized trials.MethodsThis narrative review reports on the period 2007–2017, covering feasibility studies, pilot programs, and surveys of consumers and pharmacy staff attitudes relating to alcohol SBI in this setting. Studies were identified via MEDLINE, CINAHL, Google Scholar, and reference lists of relevant publications.FindingsThe findings indicated that the provision of community pharmacy alcohol SBI requires training in communication and intervention skills and in some cases increasing confidence and alcohol-related knowledge. Consumers were generally receptive to the SBI approach but requested private areas for delivery of such.ConclusionThe high prevalence of “at risk” alcohol use in many countries and the low level of treatment seeking by this group means that novel approaches to engage opportunistically with these people is imperative in reducing alcohol-related harms. However, before committing routine health funding, these novel approaches need rigorous evaluation.

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Prescribing or dispensing medication represents the best opportunity for GPs and pharmacists to engage older people in alcohol-related clinical conversations

Abstract: This research highlights that prescribing and dispensing medication represents the ideal opportunity for health professionals to deliver alcohol-related information to older people.

Cited by 6 publications

References 36 publications

“Women of my age tend to drink”: the social construction of alcohol use by Australian and Danish women aged 50–70 years

“Women of my age tend to drink”: the social construction of alcohol use by Australian and Danish women aged 50–70 years

Community pharmacists require additional support to develop capacity in delivering alcohol-related health information to older adults

Pharmacy-based alcohol-misuse services: current perspectives

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