Part 3: Nurses' guide to alcohol and promoting healthy lifestyle changes

In this the third and final part, the focus is on the support and care of patients who are working towards a solution for their drink problem. While a number of treatment regimens exist for the management of alcohol abuse and there are well established groups to assist patients and their families, this article concentrates on three critical themes. The first concerns the promotion of insight. Only when the drink problem is understood by patients, carers and professionals alike, and shared in common terms, can rehabilitation begin to work. The second concerns communication channels. The propensity of some patients to deny their problem, or to lapse from therapy, makes communication especially challenging. While some patients are helped to overcome the risk of lapsing by being segregated from their usual community for some time (the clinic approach), many less well-resourced patients must tackle this problem from home and with the help of community-based practitioners. Finally, the interplay of treatment (detoxification) and psychological support is discussed, arguing that the nurse has an important part to play in motivating patients and helping them to solve problems as they arise.