Hospitals admit 32 alcohol patients each day: NHS feels strain as booze cases soar

HOSPITAL staff in East Yorkshire are having to deal with an average of 32 admissions due to alcohol-related illness and injury every day.

The scale of the problem was revealed in alarming figures that show the number of alcohol-related hospital admissions reached 11,715 in 2009-10.

This has increased from 10,043 the previous year.

The admissions include alcohol-related injuries, alcoholics who need detox treatment and people with alcohol poisoning.


Health officials say the figures, which are the latest available from the NHS Information Centre, are worrying.

Phil Morley, chief executive at Hull And East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, which runs Hull Royal Infirmary and Castle Hill Hospital, in Cottingham, said: “Any avoidable hospital admission is something we should be concerned about.

“Increasing alcohol consumption is an incredibly complicated social issue influenced by a wide range of factors.

“While people are drinking more, we will see increased numbers of people coming to hospital with alcohol-related injuries, as well as alcohol-related diseases.

“Clearly, this is an increased pressure on our services, in the same way that admissions due to smoking-related diseases put pressure on hospitals.

“There are clear national recommendations for the daily amount of alcohol men and women should consume and I would encourage our local population to drink in moderation in order to reduce the risk of serious diseases, such as mouth, throat or neck cancer, or cirrhosis.”

Hull has about 44,000 residents who drink up to or more than twice the recommended level of alcohol each week and a further 8,000 who are dependent on alcohol.

Meanwhile, in the East Riding, about 62,000 people drink up to or more than twice the recommended level of alcohol every week. There are about 9,500 people who are dependent on alcohol in the county.

In 2008-09, there were 4,840 alcohol-related hospital admissions in Hull and 5,203 in the East Riding. This increased to 5,637 in Hull and 6,078 in the East Riding in 2009-10.

The problem has increased at a faster rate in Hull and the East Riding than nationally, where the number of alcohol-related hospital admissions has topped one million, according to the figures in the report.

Paul Laing, public health lead for alcohol at NHS Hull, the city’s primary care trust (PCT), said work is being done to tackle the problem.

He said investment has been made in more alcohol detox beds and community-based detox programmes, as well as hospital-based alcohol workers who ensure alcoholics get the right support when they leave hospital.

Screening for 10,000 people is also carried out every year to determine how much they drink.

If it is considered to be a harmful level, they are given information about the impact it could have on their health and are offered support.

Mr Laing said: “Drinking behaviour has changed and people are drinking more.

“There is more availability with extended licensing hours and cheaper alcohol, so because of that, there is more alcohol-related harm.

“Often, people drink to manage periods of stress and boredom, and that can include areas of deprivation. But drinking goes across the board.

“Where there is a high level of alcohol-related harm, it is linked to deprivation and that is a problem in Hull because we have a high level of deprivation.

“But it’s not just defined by that.

“If you have a lot of money or a high-powered job, it grabs people at all levels.”

East Riding GPs also offer screening, as well as information or referral to specialist services.

NHS East Riding of Yorkshire, the county’s PCT, said there is also a community specialist alcohol service that offers advice, as well as community or inpatient detox.