Professor Phillips is Director of the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health Research (CAMHR), the £11 million NIHR Mental Health Research Group at the University of Hull. He is a clinical academic with a background in addiction science and research leadership in alcohol care pathways. He has shaped understanding of alcohol use disorders (AUD) in acute settings and informed the development of Alcohol Care Teams (ACTs). He is Joint Chief Investigator of the NIHR-funded ProACTIVE consortium, evaluating the impact and effectiveness of ACTs in England. Professor Phillips is a member of the UK Alcohol Clinical Guidelines and NICE Quality Standards groups on AUD.

Abstract

Improving detection and management of alcohol use disorders in acute hospital settings

Previous research has identified that alcohol-related admissions to acute hospitals continue to rise due to several factors including increasing clinical complexity and lack of access to specialist treatment and evidence-based care in the community. Our research group has conducted a series of studies to characterise those who experience alcohol-related admissions, 30-day readmissions and discharges against medical advice to help inform the development of hospital-based alcohol care teams (ACT). The validation of the Fast Alcohol Screening Test (FAST) among adults presenting to emergency departments has identified cut-off scores for alcohol risk groups. Our study involving n=997 participants across three hospitals identified a FAST score of 5 or more was the optimal cut-point for AUDIT≥20 (Sens. 94.3%, Spec 93.0%, AUROC 0.97 (95%CI 0.93-1.0) and Youden Index 0.843). Professor Phillips will describe how the introduction of the FAST into the electronic clinical assessment for all adult hospital admissions has resulted in >90,000 alcohol screens per annum in one large acute hospital. Automatic referrals for ‘probable alcohol dependence’ are directed to the ACT who have been trained and supported to deliver care in accordance with recognised clinical competencies.