Services Database Community Pharmacy Alcohol Identification and Brief Advice Service (Calderdale Area)

Pharmacies will screen and provide one to one support and advice to people over 16 years of age. The service will identify higher-risk and increasing-risk drinking and provide brief interventions to motivate individuals to take positive action and help them modify their drinking patterns, in conjunction with the local Harm Reduction Team. The pharmacy will provide referral to specialist services if necessary.

The alcohol IBA pathway is divided into four key areas:

Patient engagement
A member of the pharmacy team initiates a conversation about alcohol use with patients and customers, explains the alcohol IBA service and offers the initial screening test.

The initial simple screening test
A member of the pharmacy team provides the patient with the initial screening test and offers assistance in completing the test. If the result is negative, no action is taken. If the result is positive, a full identification test is offered.

The full identification screen (ScreenPLUS)
An accredited IBA member of staff undertakes a full identification test which consists of questions which help identify between lower risk, increasing risk, higher risk and possible dependency.

Brief advice
The accredited IBA member of staff uses information drawn from using the screen to determine the action to be taken in the next stage:

• Lower risk drinkers will be congratulated and given an information on maintaining lower risk drinking information
• Increasing risk and higher risk drinkers are offered brief advice
• Possibly dependent drinkers are offered referral to alcohol specialist support

Staff who wish to offer the ScreenPLUS element of the service must successfully complete the Alcohol Learning Centre (ALC) Intervention and Brief Advice training for Community Pharmacy open learning programme and its associated assessment (available via from: https://www.alcohollearningcentre.org.uk)(2 hours) and also attending the commissioner approved training event.

Pharmacists and technicians have the option to complete the Centre for Pharmacy Postgraduate Education (CPPE) open learning programme Alcohol misuse: support and advice from the pharmacy team Open Learning Programme (10 hours) as an alternative to the ALC IBA e-learning. In addition to the alcohol brief intervention and advice knowledge contained within the ALC programme, this programme additionally provides an in-depth knowledge of alcohol misuse, its impact on society, national strategies and alcohol as a drug.