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Readiness to change in primary care patients who screened positive for alcohol misuse
- Source :
- Annals of family medicine. 4(3)
- Publication Year :
- 2006
-
Abstract
- PURPOSE Readiness to change drinking may influence the content or effectiveness of brief alcohol counseling. This study was designed to assess readiness to change and its relationship to alcohol misuse severity among primary care patients whose screening questionnaire was positive for alcohol misuse. METHODS This study was a cross-sectional analysis of data collected from 2 consecutive mailed questionnaires. Male outpatients at 7 Veterans Affairs (VA) general medicine clinics were eligible if they returned both questionnaires, screened positive for alcohol misuse (augmented CAGE Questionnaire ≥1 point), responded to 3 readiness-to-change questions, and completed the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). A validated algorithm based on 3 standardized questions categorized participants into 3 readiness groups (precontemplation, contemplation, action). Measures of alcohol misuse severity included AUDIT, CAGE, and the 3 consumption questions from the AUDIT (AUDIT-C). Analyses were descriptive; linear-by-linear associations between alcohol misuse severity and readiness were tested with χ2 statistics. RESULTS Response rates to the first and second surveys were 59% and 55%, respectively. Of the 6,419 eligible outpatients who screened positive for alcohol misuse, 4,797 (75%) reported any readiness to change (contemplation 24%, action 51%). Among patients with AUDIT scores >8, more than 90% indicated that they drank more than they should and/or had contemplated drinking less. Greater readiness was significantly associated with greater alcohol misuse severity (P
- Subjects :
- Male
medicine.medical_specialty
Cross-sectional study
media_common.quotation_subject
Health Behavior
Alcohol
Denial, Psychological
Audit
chemistry.chemical_compound
Denial
Medicine
Humans
Mass Screening
Psychiatry
skin and connective tissue diseases
Veterans Affairs
Mass screening
media_common
Aged
Veterans
Original Research
Motivation
Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test
Primary Health Care
business.industry
Middle Aged
CAGE questionnaire
Alcoholism
Cross-Sectional Studies
chemistry
sense organs
Family Practice
business
Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 15441717
- Volume :
- 4
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Annals of family medicine
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....6b51506a3851aa226bb76b735bbd79c6