Screening for High-Risk Drinking in a College Student Health Center: Characterizing Students Based on Quantity, Frequency, and Harms

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Objective: This study examined characteristics of students who presented to a college health center and screened positive for the 5/4 defi nition of high-risk drinking (fi ve or more drinks in a row for men, or four or more drinks in a row for women, on at least one occasion in the past 2 weeks) and analyzed the students' data according to their reporting of alcohol-related harms. Method: Secondary analysis of data obtained for an intervention study to reduce high-risk drinking in college students was used. Data on alcohol use and alcohol-related harms were obtained from Web-based Healthy Lifestyle Questionnaires and 30-day alcohol recall diaries (Timeline Followback calendar). Students (N = 363; 52% female) were classifi ed as nonheavy, heavy, and heavy and frequent drinkers, based on their self-reported alcohol use. Alcohol-related harms were measured using the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index and eight additional items derived from the Drinker Inventory of Consequences-2L. Results: Students in the nonheavy, heavy, and heavy and frequent groups had mean Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index scores of 10, 14, and 23, respectively. The heavy-and-frequent drinking group comprised 20% of the sample but experienced 31% of the total harms. Conclusions: The 5/4 screening question accurately identifi ed college students presenting to a college health center who were already experiencing signifi cant alcoholrelated harms. The addition of a frequency question (drinking 3 or more days per week) to the 5/4 screening question provided a simple method for identifying those students at highest risk and in greatest need of intervention. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, Supplement No. 16, 34-44, 2009)

Young Adults at Risk for Excess Alcohol Consumption Are Often Not Asked or Counseled About Drinking Alcohol

“…Proactive guidelines recommend screening and physician advice, which could help address this common cause of injury and premature death. [2][3][4][5][6][7] Recent reviews of clinical trials found alcohol brief interventions to be effective in adults in the United States, 8,9 among college students, [10][11][12][13] and cross-nationally. 14 In the United States, unhealthy alcohol use is the third leading preventable cause of death, 15 causing over 71,000 deaths annually and shortening the lives of those who die by approximately 30 years on average.…”

Physician Advice to Adolescents About Drinking and Other Health Behaviors

“…Among adults, strong compelling evidence supports the need for and effectiveness of screening and brief intervention for unhealthy alcohol use. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Unhealthy use is a spectrum of consumption, including binge drinking, abuse, and dependence, which poses health risks. 5 Proactive guidelines recommend screening and physician advice to reduce this common cause of injury and premature death.…”

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] Unhealthy use is a spectrum of consumption, including binge drinking, abuse, and dependence, which poses health risks. 5 Proactive guidelines recommend screening and physician advice to reduce this common cause of injury and premature death. [8][9][10][11][12][13] In 2004 and 2012, the US Preventive Task Force recommended screening and behavioral counseling interventions to reduce unhealthy alcohol use by adults, 14,15 but indicated that evidence regarding these practices for adolescents was insufficient.…”

NIAAA's Rapid Response to College Drinking Problems Initiative: Reinforcing the Use of Evidence-Based Approaches in College Alcohol Prevention

“…Fourth, Schaus et al (2009a) examined the characteristics of students who presented to a university health center and screened positive as high-risk drinkers according to the 5/4 defi nition of heavy episodic drinking-that is, for men, fi ve or more drinks in a row on one or more occasions in the past 2 weeks and, for women, four or more drinks in a row. Nonheavy drinkers, heavy drinkers, and frequent heavy drinkers (who drank heavily three or more times in the past 2 weeks) had mean scores of 10, 14, and 23, respectively, on the Rutgers Alcohol Problem Index.…”