Healthcare Professionals Unite To Address A 7 Billion Dollar Problem

Alcohol-related harm costs Aotearoa more than 7 billion dollars every year and is the leading cause of preventable death in Kiwis aged 15-49. Nearly 20% of all deaths for men, and 10% of all deaths for women are attributed to alcohol use.

Bindi Norwell, Chief Executive at ProCare says: “Alcohol-related harms are seen every day in general practice through direct injury from family violence, unintentional injuries inside and outside the home, tragic and preventable foetal alcohol syndrome and contributing to long-term health conditions such as liver, heart disease and cancer.

“Alcohol causes issues such as the interruption of sleep patterns, productivity and can exacerbate stress, anxiety and depression. All of which have a silent, daily impact on the physical, mental, spiritual and whānau health of our communities,” she points out.

“We have a responsibility to advocate on behalf of the communities our practices serve and the health professionals we represent. There are several actions ProCare has taken over the last few months to help reduce the harm of alcohol in our communities,” continues Norwell.

Supporting Chle Swarbrick’s Private Members’ Sale and Supply of Alcohol (Harm Minimisation) Amendment Bill

ProCare has recently written to Auckland Council in support of Councillor Josephine Bartley’s Notice of Motion which proposes that the Governing Body support Chle Swarbrick’s Private Members’ Sale and Supply of Alcohol (Harm Minimisation) Amendment Bill.

The Bill is long overdue, with Part 1 seeking to end the special appeals process on local alcohol policies which will enable communities to have effective agency over liquor sale and supply in their neighbourhoods. Part 2 implements a number of recommendations from the 2014 Ministerial Forum on Alcohol Advertising and Sponsorship that focus on reducing young people’s exposure to messages encouraging the consumption of alcohol and removing the link between sport and alcohol.

Dr Sue Wells, Associate Clinical Director at ProCare says: “Unfortunately, the heaviest burden falls on Māori, Pacific, tamariki, and rangatahi. With regards to alcohol marketing, Māori and Pacific tamariki are exposed five and three times more, respectively, than non-Māori or Pacific children.i Moreover, alcohol marketing in sports is highly visible on TV and at local games and sport events attended by tamariki.i ProCare believes the Advertising Standards Authority Code for Advertising and Promotion of Alcohol and the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012 (SaSA) must do more to protect some of our most vulnerable.

“Incredibly, one of the most serious and prevalent health problems in our country gets very little attention until it’s too late. We tend to focus funding and support of treatment such as after a drink-driving crash rather than prevention. This Bill will address the need to limit exposure and normalisation of alcohol, particularly with our younger generations. It is a step in the right direction, but overall, we need a full review of the Bill,” she continues.

Empowering GPs to deliver equitable alcohol advice

ProCare has partnered with Counties Manukau Health and four other primary health organisations to more directly support delivering equitable Alcohol ABC (Ask, Brief advice, Counselling) advice. The partnership is aimed at effecting change at a very basic level – empowering general practices to incorporate alcohol assessment into their day-to-day practice. This includes providing access to high-quality and culturally appropriate assessment for alcohol use, brief advice and earlier intervention, and referral to treatment when appropriate.

“Ideally, a patient should be asked about their alcohol intake, offered brief advice if appropriate, and referred on to specialist services if needed,” says Dr Sue Wells.

ProCare practices are actively encouraged and supported to undertake an assessment of alcohol consumption and deliver brief advice for all eligible people over 15 years and deliver brief advice to those drinking above the low risk drinking guidelines. Data from ProCare’s Population Health Strategy shows that the percentage of people drinking above recommended guidelines has increased by 50% over the last two years – from 6% to 9%*.

ProCare's Better Together Collaboratives

ProCare recently conducted a quality improvement collaborative, with 24 practices participating and aiming to improve their alcohol assessment rates.

“The collaborative brought many practices together who shared their best ideas for change as well as building on the learnings already gained through the Counties Manukau alcohol harm minimisation programme. It has been very successful and feedback from practices has been unanimously positive, continues Dr Wells.

“The practices involved in the collaboratives achieved significant improvements overall** and for Māori and Pacific compared with non-participating practices in the network and these improvements were achieved in the midst of a COVID-19 pandemic,” she concludes.

Notes to editors

i Nana, G. Alcohol costs – but, who pays? Presented at the Alcohol Action NZ Conference, Wellington, New Zealand, 2018.

* Any move upwards in these figures is seen as significant.

** The collaborative practices increased alcohol status assessment from 46% to 50% (a 4% total increase) whereas the rest of the network made no gains in performance which remained static at 43% over 6 months. Any move upwards in these figures is seen as significant.

About ProCare

ProCare is a leading healthcare provider that aims to deliver the most progressive, pro-active and equitable health and wellbeing services in Aotearoa. We do this through our clinical support services, mental health and wellness services, virtual/tele health, mobile health, smoking cessation and by taking a population health and equity approach to our mahi. As New Zealand’s largest Primary Health Organisation, we represent a network of general practice teams and healthcare professionals who provide care to more than 830,000 people. These practices serve the largest Pacific and South Asian populations enrolled in general practice and the largest Māori population in Tāmaki Makaurau. For more information go to www.procare.co.nz

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