PHARMACY customers seeking hangover cures or the morning-after pill are to be questioned about their drinking habits and offered help with alcohol problems.
Under a new pilot scheme involving community chemists,
20 pharmacies in the North-east of Scotland are being recruited to take part in the innovative pilot scheme to help people change their drinking habits and tackle alcohol abuse.
In Scotland, the number of deaths as a direct result of alcohol has almost tripled over the past 30 years.
It has been estimated that alcohol misuse costs the country 2.25 billion a year through its burden on the health service, justice system and business.
The pilot study in the NHS Grampian area, being led by researchers at Aberdeen University, follows similar "brief intervention" schemes which have already been introduced at GP surgeries and accident and emergency units throughout Scotland over the past 18 months.
Dr Margaret Watson, the senior research fellow at the university's Centre of Academic Primary Care, who is leading the study, said it was hoped that up to 800 customers at pharmacies throughout the North-east would be involved in the 12-month study.
She explained: "Across Scotland, various health professionals are already delivering these interventions including GPs, people who provide antenatal care, and some dentists. In the first instance, in this scheme, we are targeting areas where there are no other health professionals who are delivering these interventions at the moment, and we are hoping that remote and rural areas will be represented.
"The role of community pharmacists is changing. In the past, pharmacies have just been seen as the place where you get your medicines. But the pharmacist is a trained health professional who can offer advice and counselling about a range of matters and this is another area where they could become involved."
Under the scheme, customers who call at pharmacies and ask for specific products, such as chlamydia testing kits, the morning-after pill or hangover cures, will be asked to fill out a simple questionnaire about their alcohol consumption.
Dr Watson continued: "These are symptoms that might be associated with having too much alcohol. If you are above a certain score, it could suggest that the levels of alcohol you are consuming might be harmful or hazardous to your health.
"Those customers will be invited to see the pharmacists for a one-to-one private consultation."
She said that during the brief consultations, the pharmacist would try to motivate the customer to reduce their alcohol consumption and arrange for help and counselling where necessary.
Dr Watson stressed: "Everything must be done with the consent of the customer.
"The participation in the study is voluntary. This study will give us a chance to see if it works in pharmacies and to see if it is cost-effective."
A spokesman for the Scottish Government welcomed the study. He said: "Research has found that brief interventions in primary care lead to a reduction in consumption among harmful and hazardous drinkers.
"The Scottish Government welcomes any initiatives that will add to this evidence base and help assess the effectiveness of brief interventions in other settings."
Chris Sorek, the chief executive of Drinkaware, which is funded by the alcohol industry, said: " It's essential we change people's relationship with drinking, and education has a key role to play."
The study is being funded by the Chief Scientist Office in Scotland and the country's three alcohol and drug partnerships.
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