All-Ireland effort to tackle alcohol abuse launched
Alcohol claims the lives of more than 1,300 people each year across the island of Ireland, health chiefs holding a cross-border conference on the problem confirmed.
While the figures relate to deaths caused directly by drink, officials said alcohol has a much wider impact and costs governments in both parts of Ireland billions every year.
Health Ministers Dr James Reilly and Edwin Poots jointly opened the first north-south conference on the issue, with policymakers pledging to work together to tackle the problem.
The Armagh meeting heard that 2,000 acute hospital beds are occupied every night in the Republic due to alcohol-related illness, costing the healthcare system €1.2bn each year.
Delegates were also told that problem drinking costs the North up to £900m (€1.07bn) every year, with almost £250m (€298m) borne by the health sector.
The most recent figures for the Republic showed that 88 people die each month because of alcohol.
In the North last year, 284 people died directly as a result of alcohol misuse, an increase of around 40% on the loss of life recorded in 2001.
Health Minister Dr Reilly said: “This conference has set the scene for a longer term, all-island collaborative approach for tackling issues relating to alcohol abuse.
“The areas we would like progress on a North-South basis are measures to reduce the availability of cheap alcohol and treatment and rehabilitation of those affected by alcohol misuse.
“Alcohol use and misuse is an area where both jurisdictions can achieve a lot together – especially in dealing with the challenges that alcohol presents for young adults.”
He said drink was closely associated with Irish social and cultural life, but he said the financial and human costs of its misuse had to be addressed.
Data from the Republic showed that one in four deaths among young men is drink-related, with cancer linked to one in 12 such deaths and heart complaints are associated with one in 25.
The North's Health Minister Mr Poots launched a new five-year strategy to prevent and address the harm related to alcohol and drug misuse north of the border, and he stressed its impact on society.
“There is no doubt that alcohol misuse is one of the main threats to public health in Northern Ireland,” said Mr Poots.
“If we do not take significant and robust action, the costs to Northern Ireland, and the health and social care system in particular, will continue to grow.”
Mr Poots added: “Alcohol remains our favourite drug, and we face similar problems on both sides of the border.”
Additional figures for the Republic showed:
* Alcohol is a contributory factor in half of all suicides and in deliberate self-harm. It also increases the risk of more than 60 medical conditions, such as cancers.
* It is linked to a quarter of injuries presenting to emergency departments and more than 7,866 admissions in 2010 to specialised addiction treatment centres.
* Alcohol is associated with harm to the baby because of mothers drinking during pregnancy and is a factor in unplanned pregnancies. It increases the risk of children needing special care, with an estimation that adult alcohol problems are associated with 16% of child abuse cases.
* Alcohol was a trigger in a third of domestic abuse cases in 2005.
* Alcohol-related crime cost an estimated €1.19bnin 2007. The cost of lost economic output due to alcohol was estimated to be €527m, while alcohol-related road accidents cost an estimated €530m.
Further statistics for the North showed that:
* More than 3,000 individuals were in treatment for alcohol misuse on March 1, 2010.
* In 2010/11, there were over 12,000 admissions to acute hospitals with an alcohol-related diagnosis.
* There were 355 admissions to hospital for liver cirrhosis – up from 281 in 2005/06.
