What should doctors do differently when screening for alcohol use and delivering brief interventions for agonist patients in primary care? General principles remain the same like for other people, but:
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the screening and treatment processes should be more systematic and proactive in all problem drug users, especially in those with concurrent chronic illnesses or psychiatric co-morbidity,
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lower thresholds should be applied for both identification and intervention of problem alcohol use and referral to specialist services,
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special skills and specialist supervision is required if managing persistent/dependent alcohol use in primary care.
To read the full guideline, click here (http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11845-013-0982-2#)