About alcohol and alcohol-related problems

   About alcohol misuse

Alcohol misuse is not covered in any depth, if at all, within the professional training of social workers, teachers, nurses, health visitors or doctors. So professionals are likely to know as much or as little as the general population with the exception of only a few with a special interest in this area. Most professionals are aware of clients in their case-loads with chronic drink problems, usually because they present with chronic problems that are self-evident. They can appear unwilling to cut down their drinking and may sometimes disrupt services for others. This in itself leads to the assumption that all those experiencing problems with alcohol are ‘alcoholic’ and impossible to work with - which is certainly not the case. However with little information about assessment and specialist backup, professionals can lose confidence in their skills and abilities to offer appropriate interventions. At its worst the general misconceptions held about ‘alcoholics’ would make any professional reluctant to explore issues about drinking at all.

How does this affect children?
Reluctance to follow up concerns that an adult might have difficulties with drinking means that professionals also miss an opportunity to check how children of adults misusing alcohol are coping. It also means that parental alcohol misuse will be over-looked as a possible factor for a child for whom there is concern. Obviously any professional will consider the overall welfare of any child they are working with and take appropriate steps if they are concerned. Faced with a chronic drinker, most professionals will consider parenting issues. But as most of the people with alcohol problems are not chronic drinkers, and many of the children affected by parental drinking are not so obviously ‘in need’, their needs are missed. Most importantly the opportunity is missed for helping build resilience in the child to protect against long term harm.

About alcohol and alcohol-related problems: introduction