“Screening for our Safety: Alcohol Screening in the Emergency Department”

Alcohol-related motor vehicle crashes continue to be a major public health issue, and the emergency department is an important location for identification and referral of patients with alcohol use problems. Yet too often this does not occur. Crash-involved drivers who are transported to the emergency department are much less likely to be tested for alcohol than drivers not going to the emergency department. Emergency physicians are critical gatekeepers and are in a unique position to identify alcohol involvement in crashes that otherwise would go unnoticed, undocumented, and untreated.

Conducted by Dr. Michael J. Mello of the Injury Prevention Center, Rhode Island Hospital, and Brown Medical School, this project developed, implemented, and evaluated a statewide education program for emergency department physicians, addressing the need to screen all injured emergency department motor vehicle crash patients for alcohol use, and to refer those who need further intervention. The education program is delivered to physicians by means of an interactive online curriculum, which educates physicians about:

• The role alcohol plays in motor vehicle crashes.
• Screening tools to identify patients with alcohol use problems.
• Mechanisms available for physicians to report alcohol impaired drivers.
• The need for physicians to take an active role in traffic safety in their communities.