Danish Feasibility Study of a New Innovation for Screening and Brief Intervention for Alcohol Problems in Primary Care: The 15-method

Abstract

Introduction The 15-method: a new brief intervention tool for alcohol problems in primary care, has shown promising results in Sweden for mild to moderate alcohol use disorders. Objectives To evaluate the 15-method’s usability, organizational integration, and overall implementation feasibility in Danish general practice (GP) in preparation for a large-scale evaluation of the method’s effectiveness in identifying and treating alcohol problems in GP. Methods In the Central and Southern Region of Denmark, five general practices participated: seven doctors and eight nurses. Participants received half a day of training in the 15-method. Testing of implementation strategies and overall applicability ran for two months. A focus group interview, two individual interviews with the participating doctors, and five individual patient interviews concluded the study phase. Results indicate that implementation of the 15-method is feasible in Danish general practice. The healthcare professionals and patients were optimistic about the method and its possibilities. The method was considered a new patient-centred treatment offer and provided structure to a challenging topic. An interdisciplinary approach was much welcomed. Results indicate that the method is ready for large-scale assessment. Conclusions Implementation of the 15-method is considered feasible in Danish general practice, and large-scale evaluation is currently being planned. The results from the present feasibility study, and an overview of the large-scale evaluation, will be presented at the conference. Disclosure No significant relationships.

Keywords

• Screening and Brief Intervention
• Alcohol Treatment
• Alcohol use disorder
• General Practice