Alcohol screening and other drug use in pediatric emergency departments.
Effective and efficient screening tools are important for effective diagnosis and response to alcohol use, especially in settings like an emergency department where providers don’t have much time to diagnose and treat patients. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has developed a two-question screening guide that seeks to monitor alcohol use; however, it’s not known how this screening tool relates to cigarette and other drug misuse. Researchers used the questionnaire and other screening tools in 16 pediatric emergency departments to explore their relationship to other substances. They found that lifetime tobacco and drug use was predicted by past-year alcohol use detected when using the NIAAA screener. The article, Screening for adolescent alcohol use in the emergency department: What does it tell us about cannabis, tobacco, and other drug use? was supported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse and the Health Resources and Services Administration, along with several other operating divisions. It was published in Substance Use & Misuse.
Link to full item
