Alcohol misuse (health and wellbeing needs in South Tyneside)
Unmet needs
- There is strong evidence available to suggest what level of provision is required in a local area. NICE Guidance PH24 provides recommendations for the prevention and early identification of alcohol use disorders using a population level approach. These approaches can help those who are not in regular contact with services as well as those who have been specifically advised to reduce their alcohol intake.
- Many of the recommendations within the NICE PH24 are clearly supported in South Tyneside. These include:
- Supporting the regional work via Balance, the regional alcohol office, around lobbying for minimum unit price
- Raising awareness through national and regional campaigns via PHE and Balance.
- Working in partnership with colleagues across the partnership around licensing and trading standards.
- Work is underway in South Tyneside to review the strategic approach the Council and partners are looking to take to reduce alcohol related harm and will be updating the South Tyneside alcohol strategy.
- An evidence based strategy will help partners to focus limited resources in the right place and make efficiency savings where possible.
- The recently repeated Health Related Behaviour questionnaire will be an opportunity to revisit the impact alcohol has on children and families. Following a recent Ofsted inspection the toxic trio (mental health, substance misuse and domestic violence) has been highlighted as an area for further development, with particular emphasis on safeguarding children.
- South Tyneside has a high number of adults in specialist alcohol treatment services. There are 5.2 per 1,000 population, the 5th highest in the country, this highlights the above average rate of alcohol harm, however in part, the high rate can be perceived as a high quality of local service provision. Effective structured treatment for alcohol dependent adults will continue to be an essential element of a local integrated alcohol harm reduction strategy.
- Increased consumption could be tackled with reducing availability. In 2015 / 16 South Tyneside had a rate of nearly twice as many females (605) being admitted to hospital for alcohol-specific conditions compared to the national rate of 367 per 100,000. It is also the third highest in the region.
