title: Salford alcohol assertive outreach team: a new model for reducing alcohol-related admissions.
abstract: Alcohol-related admissions are increasing. A significant number of these admissions are attributable to a small number of complex patients with other comorbidities who do not engage well with mainstream services. Assertive outreach teams have been used in the field of psychiatry to engage patients who are poorly compliant. This study examines whether an alcohol assertive outreach team (AAOT) can engage with this group and reduce hospital admissions.
  
  
  
  The AAOT is a multidisciplinary team with medical, psychiatric, substance misuse, psychology, nursing and social work specialists. The team worked with patients with the highest number of alcohol-related admissions and case managed in a community setting for 6 months. The admission and emergency department attendances of the cohort were compared for the 3-month period before and after the intervention. Christo inventory for substance misuse services (CISS) scores were determined pre and post the intervention period.
  
  
  
  54 patients were case managed. The total number of admissions in 3 months fell from 151 prior to the intervention period to 50 following the intervention. Emergency department attendances also fell from 360 in 3 months to 146 following the intervention period. CISS scores fell from 11 preintervention to eight postintervention.
  
  
  
  An AAOT model appears to reduce hospital admissions and emergency department attendances in a complex group of patients that display high alcohol-related admissions.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Department , Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust , Salford , UK.
authors.forename: Neill R
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Hughes
authors.forename: Natalie
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Houghton
authors.forename: Haitham
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Nadeem
authors.forename: Jackie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bell
authors.forename: Suzanne
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: McDonald
authors.forename: Noel
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Glynn
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Scarfe
authors.forename: Bev
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Mackay
authors.forename: Anthony
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rogers
authors.forename: Melanie
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Walters
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McDonald
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Dalton
keywords: Alcohol; Health Economics; Psychology; Quality Of Life