The Swedish joint action method against drink driving-a study of suspected drink drivers' own experiences.

OBJECTIVE: In Sweden, a joint action method called SMADIT is in use, where the police quickly offer help from the social services or the dependency care and treatment service to suspected drink drivers. The objective of this article is to analyze the experiences of suspected drink drivers who accepted the offer of help and what it meant for them. The knowledge can be used to improve procedures and consultations. Furthermore, it can allow the basic premises of the method to be examined; for example, the importance of offering help quickly. METHODS: To enable comparisons over time, in-depth interviews were conducted with 12 suspected drink drivers on 2 occasions with 1 year between. RESULTS: To varying degrees the informants knew about their alcohol problems but were unsure whether they would have sought help by themselves. Therefore, the original ideas of the method with an initial contact with the social services or the dependency care and treatment service within 24 h was found to be important. However, the results also showed that some of the informants needed some time before the first meeting because they were in shock from the drink driving incident or in need of sleep. Therefore, the drink driver's situation and individual wishes always have to be considered. The article also shows that an encouraging attitude among the police, the social services, and the dependency care and treatment service is important for the success of the SMADIT method. The informants are satisfied with the method and in retrospect the incident and the SMADIT offer of help are described as a turning point in their lives. One year after being offered help the informants were no longer focused solely on the personal consequences of drink driving, as they were shortly after the incident. Instead, they had gained insights into the harm they could have done to other road users when they drove while drunk. CONCLUSIONS: One conclusion from this article is that SMADIT, as an innovative method that can be deployed more rapidly than other alcohol-impaired driving countermeasures, should be considered as a good complement to conventional methods to deal with drink driving. Based on the results, we recommend a trial of the joint action method against drink driving in other jurisdictions.

Cooperation between police and social treatment services offering treatment to drink and drug drivers--experience in Sweden.

OBJECTIVE: To describe and analyze a measure that has been introduced in Sweden with the objective of quickly offering treatment for the alcohol or drug problems suspected drink or drug drivers may have. The goal of the measure is that every suspected drink or drug driver shall, as soon as apprehended by the police, be offered contact with the social services or the dependency care and treatment service, which can offer a consultation and, if needed, suitable treatment. METHOD: Interviews and questionnaire surveys, as well as forms that describe the treatment received by each individual case. RESULTS: About 20 percent of all those who receive the offer from the police accept contact with the social services or the care and treatment service, and approximately 40 percent of these also attend the consultation. There is a favorable fundamental attitude to the method among the participating authorities. However, some shortcomings in application are revealed. One example concerns drug drivers who are offered contact with the social services or the care and treatment service to a considerably lesser extent than drink drivers. Another neglected group are the people who are at first suspected of drink driving but are later found to have an alcohol concentration below the legal limit. Compared with those who have an alcohol concentration above the legal limit, this group is offered contact to a lesser extent and also have a lower propensity to accept the offer. CONCLUSIONS: The results indicate a strong support for the method from involved authorities, but participation could be improved by giving more attention to neglected groups.