Purpose of the Guidelines

These guidelines provide up-to-date, evidence-based information to clinicians on available treatments for people with alcohol problems and are largely directed towards individual clinicians in practice, such as primary care physicians (general practitioners, nursing staff), specialist medical practitioners, psychologists and other counsellors, and other health professionals. Some chapters highlight service or system level issues that impact on clinicians and their patients. These include recommendations concerning Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, culturally and linguistically diverse groups, stigma, and discrimination. Elsewhere, organisation capacity is implied, such as medical resources for withdrawal management where recommendations indicate use of medications. As all forms of treatment will not be readily available or suitable for all populations or settings, these guidelines may require interpretation and adaptation.  

These guidelines do not attempt to provide information about overall systems of treatment delivery, which is a policy decision that relates to the needs, resources and structure of health care within jurisdictions, however, some comments are made about planning of services for alcohol problems. At the outset, the authors recognise that many people with alcohol problems change their behaviour without formal help or intervention. The way people identify a drinking problem, recognise their responsibility to change, and achieve the self-efficacy to do so, remains variable and incompletely understood. However, at best, professional treatment can only contribute to a person’s self-awareness.