title: Implementation of computerized alcohol screening and advice in an emergency department--a nursing staff perspective.
abstract: Changes in attitudes towards alcohol prevention among nursing staff are evaluated after implementing an opportunistic computerized alcohol screening and intervention (e-SBI) at an emergency department. After having assessed the patients in the triage room the nurses asked patients to perform the e-SBI on a touch screen computer. Before the start of the project more than 60% of the nurses expected the patients to react negatively when asked about their alcohol habits. After one year of screening only 10% reported experience of negative reactions from the patients. More than 50% of the nurses found it easy or very easy to ask the patients to perform the e-SBI and more than 75% of the nurses agreed that the e-SBI did not affect their workload. The proportion of nurses who considered alcohol prevention to be part of their duties at the emergency department did not change (40%) after implementing the e-SBI. During the two-year study period, 1982 patients completed the e-SBI which constituted 10-20% of all patients between 16 and 70 years of age attending the department for a sub critical condition. The e-SBI seems to have better potential than ordinary alcohol screening and intervention for implementation into routine emergency departments due to its simplicity and low time consumption.
authors.affiliation: Department of Health and Society, Division of Social Medicine and Public Health Science, Linköping University, S-581 83 Linköping, Sweden. prebe@ihs.liu.se
authors.forename: Preben
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bendtsen
authors.forename: Marika
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Holmqvist
authors.forename: Kjell
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Johansson
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000437:Alcoholism / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000517:prevention & control; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D001294:Attitude to Health; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D003194:Computer-Assisted Instruction / Q000379:methods*; D003936:Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods* / Q000523:psychology; D016529:Emergency Nursing / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration; D004636:Emergency Service, Hospital; D005260:Female; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods / Q000451:nursing / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009730:Nursing Assessment; D015403:Nursing Evaluation Research; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000523:psychology*; D010353:Patient Education as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D020377:Self Efficacy; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013548:Sweden; D016526:Workload