Identification and Risk-Stratification of Problem Alcohol Drinkers with Minor Trauma in the Emergency Department

BACKGROUND: Brief alcohol intervention may improve outcomes for injury patients with hazardous drinking but is less effective with increased severity of alcohol involvement. This study evaluated a brief method for detecting problem drinking in minor trauma patients and differentiating hazardous drinkers from those with more severe alcohol problems.METHODS: Subjects included 60 minor trauma patients in an academic urban emergency department (ED) who had consumed any amount of alcohol in the prior month. Screening and risk stratification involved the use of a heavy-drinking-day screening item and the Rapid Alcohol Problems Screen (RAPS). We compared the heavy-drinking-day item to past-month alcohol use, as obtained by validated self-reporting methods, and measured the percentage of carbohydrate-deficient transferrin (%CDT) to assess the accuracy of self-reporting. The Alcohol Dependence Scale (ADS) was administered to gauge the severity of alcohol involvement and compared to the RAPS.RESULTS: Eighty percent of the subjects endorsed at least one heavy drinking day in the past year, and all patients who exceeded recommended weekly drinking limits endorsed at least one heavy drinking day. Among those with at least one heavy drinking day, 58% had a positive RAPS result. Persons with no heavy drinking days (n=12) had a median ADS of 0.5 (range 0 to 3). RAPS-negative persons with heavy drinking days (n=20) had a median ADS of 2 (range 0 to 8). RAPS-positive persons with heavy drinking days (n=28) had a median ADS of 8 (range 1 to 43).CONCLUSION: A heavy-drinking-day item is useful for detecting hazardous drinking patterns, and the RAPS is useful for differentiating more problematic drinkers who may benefit from referral from those more likely to respond to a brief intervention. This represents a time-sensitive approach for risk-stratifying non-abstinent injury patients prior to ED discharge. [West J Emerg Med. 2010 May;11(2):133-7.

Everyone on Radio

This adaptation of Everyman was scheduled for production on the main stage in the Kline Theatre of Gettysburg College. With the onset of COVID-19 and the ensuing advent of distance-learning, that could no longer happen, and originally that was a crushing disappointment. But the show must go on, especially when that show is “Everyman,” an especially apt theatrical choice for a pestilential year. Everyman offers exciting possibilities for audio drama, especially considering the play’s emphasis on the internal struggle of the individual facing death; Everyone on Radio attempts to make the most of these aspects of the play. Never willing to blink in the face of doom, the students in this class rose to the occasion with incredible pluck, optimism, and good humor. In particular, Lauren “Helping” Hand, the peer associate for this year’s course, led the pivot to the podcast platform, and this production is as much hers as anyone’s: She was chief cheerleader, coordinator, and executive producer, in tandem with Joey “Magic Fingers” Maguschak, who acted as senior sound engineer and producer

Appalachian Spring

A large mural that was created by 19 studio art and education students in 2009. Renowned Latina artist Judith Baca worked alongside the students.https://scholarworks.moreheadstate.edu/university_art_collection/1090/thumbnail.jp