ABSTRACT
A survey of 586 trainee doctors in Yorkshire was undertaken to ascertain current junior doctors' knowledge and understanding of alcohol units. Approximately 18% of trainees had no knowledge of alcohol units despite the fact that 82% believed they had a good knowledge. Once again, those who did not drink alcohol knew less about alcohol units than those who did. Little progress seems to have been made on this important subject since our previous survey 7 years ago. Further steps must be taken to ensure that junior doctors are taught about alcohol units during the course of their training so that they are able to counsel patients appropriately.
Subject(s)
Alcoholic Beverages , Clinical Competence , Medical Staff, Hospital/education , Alcohol Drinking , Alcohol-Related Disorders , Humans , Medical Staff, Hospital/standards , Surveys and QuestionnairesSubject(s)
Anticoagulants/therapeutic use , Atrial Fibrillation/drug therapy , Quality of Life , Warfarin/therapeutic use , Aged , Aged, 80 and over , Atrial Fibrillation/prevention & control , Atrial Fibrillation/psychology , Female , Health Status , Humans , Male , Matched-Pair Analysis , Quality of Life/psychology , Stroke/prevention & controlABSTRACT
A survey of 445 doctors in Yorkshire was conducted to ascertain their knowledge and awareness of alcohol units. Only 58% had some knowledge, and general practitioners scored better (69%) than hospital doctors (45%). However, 14% of doctors had no knowledge at all about alcohol units. Those who did not drink alcohol knew less than those who did and trainee doctors had significantly less knowledge than more senior physicians. Junior doctors who often deal with alcohol-related problems in their day-to-day hospital work had a poor knowledge. There needs to be a greater emphasis on alcohol and alcohol-related problems (including how to calculate alcohol units) in undergraduate and postgraduate curricula to improve doctors' knowledge and awareness of this important subject.
