The Drink-Less Program

The Drink-Less Program is a straightforward set of intervention resources for primary health care practitioners to use for screening and brief intervention in a person with known or potential hazardous or harmful alcohol consumption.

It is based on the 5-minute intervention shown to be effective in the World Health Organization collaborative trial of brief intervention for hazardous or harmful alcohol use. It was initially developed at the University of Sydney, Australia, and has been adapted and employed in approximately 20 countries, being updated periodically.

It is proven suitable for use in primary health care, occupational health settings, in medical specialists’ practices and as part of drink-driver intervention programs.

The Drink-Less Program comprises the package of resources below:

• The AUDIT questionnaire - Drink-Less version
• A scoring template for the AUDIT - Drink-Less scoring template and decision process
• A Handycard to structure a brief intervention - Drink-Less visual aid for general practitioners 
• A brochure outlining strategies to reduce consumption and including a prospective drink diary - Drink-Less information booklet
• An information leaflet for general practitioners, physicians, nursing professionals and therapists/counsellors - Drink-Less guidelines for general practitioners 
• An information leaflet for practice or hospital staff - Drink-Less guidelines for receptionists