The relationship between deprivation and alcohol-related presentation at Accident and Emergency (A&E) over a three-month period

Abstract

Objectives

To identify any relationship between deprivation and the level of presentation to Accident and Emergency with alcohol-related conditions in a busy East Coast teaching hospital in Scotland.

Methods

Over an 87-day-period initial screening to determine whether alcohol played a part in each presentation was conducted at triage. These patients were then streamed according to their Paddington Alcohol Test (Pat) score into Pat +ve and Pat −ve groups. The postcode of each patient was recorded before they were assigned deprivation levels using the DepCat scoring system. This information was then compiled in Microsoft Excel 2003 and a graph showing the differences in the number of presentations across the social spectrum was constructed.

Results

Nine hundred and forty four patients were screened as attending due to alcohol with 43.86% being Pat +ve and 56.14% being Pat −ve. Overall 66.42% of the Pat +ve group and 54.42% of Pat −ve were from deprived or very deprived areas.

Conclusions

The use of electronic-based screening was effective at highlighting patients presenting to Accident and Emergency with alcohol-related problems, and these presentations highlighted a direct link between the level of deprivation and attendances.