Treatment of Alcohol Addiction: Combining Rehabilitation Psychology and Acute Hospital Care: Cultural Comparison Between the United States and Germany.

The purpose of this review is to compare the treatment of alcohol addiction from different perspectives: On one hand, the perspective of an American psychotherapist, on the other hand, the perspective of a German acute care and addiction medicine physician. The authors provide an in-depth review comparing various strategies for treating alcohol dependence. This paper focuses on acute care, rehabilitation, psychotherapy, motivational interviewing, harm reduction, and psychopharmacology as the primary therapeutic modalities for treating alcohol addiction. This is investigated in the context of the author's respective healthcare and rehabilitation systems and cultural particularities relevant to alcohol use disorder. Based on the literature review, the authors found that the main treatment modalities were common in both countries, regardless of cultural differences. Germany has an overall lower regulation on alcohol (including a lower drinking age) and a higher alcohol per capita consumption with fewer lifetime abstainers in former drinkers. One major finding between the two countries is that the access to the professional addiction aid system is more accessible in Germany compared to the United States. On the contrary, the self-help sector within the United States is much more developed, utilized and accepted by healthcare and rehabilitation professionals. Overall, both countries' healthcare systems are making intentional efforts to address and improve the treatment of alcohol use disorder. Improving research for evidence-based treatment will need to expand in order to stay current with the challenges and trends in alcohol use in both countries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]