Home detoxification for problem drinkers: acceptability to clients, relatives, general practitioners and outcome...

The value of a new Home Detoxification service was assessed in a variety of ways employing data collected from 41 clients of the service, their family and GP's. By 60 days from the start of treatment, 11 clients were abstinent, two were controlling their drinking with relatively few problems, 13 had 'improved', 14 were not 'improved' and one had an unknown outcome. Subsequent involvement in treatment by both clients and their partners was high in comparison with other studies. Significant predictors of 'Good' outcome included attendance for after-care by client and by spouse/partner and a low Alcohol Problems Inventory score. High levels of satisfaction were expressed with the HD service by clients, their carers and GP's. The great majority of clients gave 'home' as their preferred place of treatment and nearly half claimed they would have been unwilling to accept hospital care. There was evidence of significant, though modest, shifts in GP's management practices towards less use of hospitals and greater use of the patient's home after 15 months of the programme.