Community Alcohol Services: A call for a pro‐active response Available to Purchase

Background: A consistent finding in alcohol research is that residential treatment gains tend to be cost inefficient and short‐lived. Yet this is often the only option offered to alcohol‐dependent subjects who live alone, or who are entering into first time detoxification. Clinical implications: This paper outlines an extension of the services routinely provided by statutory services in the community, which would be community psychiatric nurse‐led. The prescribing responsibility should be with the specialist alcohol treatment agency. Suggestions are made to enhance the uptake of community services including measures to facilitate Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) attendance. Conclusion: Alcohol detoxification in the community is usually safe. If the recommendations are put into practice, a greater number of subjects could be treated in a community setting.