Effectiveness of Combining Organizational Alcohol Policy and Skills Training for Managers to Reduce Hazardous Alcohol Consumption in Swedish Workplaces: Study Protocol for a Cluster Randomized Study

Abstract

BackgroundHigh alcohol consumption poses risks to individual health and society. Previous alcohol interventions have mainly focused on high-risk consumers or young adults in school-based settings. Since the majority of the adult population is in the workforce, the workplace can be considered a favorable arena for implementing interventions. ObjectiveThis protocol describes a project aimed at increasing knowledge of the effectiveness of combining the implementation of an organizational alcohol policy with skills training for managers as a workplace alcohol prevention program, by evaluating the intervention and exploring managers’ perceptions of the intervention. MethodsOrganizations with at least 100 employees were invited to take part in the project. A total of 11 organizations (744 managers and 11,761 employees) were included in the project. Data are collected through self-administered online surveys at baseline, 12 months, and 24 months. The primary outcome is managers’ inclination to initiate an early alcohol intervention (eg, by initiating a dialogue) when concern regarding employees’ hazardous alcohol consumption arises. The secondary outcomes of interest are managers’ and employees’ organizational alcohol policy knowledge and changes in alcohol consumption, as measured using the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) score. A linear mixed-model framework will be used to model variability on different levels. Primary analysis will follow an intention-to-treat approach. Additionally, managers’ responses from semistructured interviews will be analyzed using thematic analysis to explore managers’ experiences regarding the prevention program. ResultsThis study is ongoing. The overall study start was on January 2018, and the study is planned to end in December 2020. Baseline and 12-month follow-up measurements have been collected. ConclusionsThis project is designed to evaluate the effectiveness of an alcohol prevention program regarding higher inclination to initiate early alcohol interventions after policy implementation and skills training among managers, compared to the usual practices in the workplace. The results from this study can contribute to increased knowledge about alcohol interventions and future prevention programs in the workplace. Trial RegistrationISRCTN17250048; http://www.isrctn.com/ISRCTN17250048 International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID)DERR1-10.2196/17145