Patient Education for Moderate Drinking

ABSTRACT

A brief advice by a physician to problem drinkers are known to be very effective in reducing alcohol consumption, health care utilization, motor vehicle events, and its related costs. This article is to provide the definition of moderate drinking and screening methods for alcohol problems in the context of primary care. Various individualized strategies of education can be applied to the patients based on their drinking habits on each visit. Regular programs of group education for problem drinkers and their families are also considered to be useful methods in both ambulatory and hospital settings. From preventive perspectives, public health educations should be focused on the establishment of a culture of moderate drinking in the community.