Doctors should identify and treat problem drinkers

Everyone admitted to hospital should be screened for alcohol misuse in order to stem the rise in deaths and diseases related to excessive drinking, suggests a report from the Royal College of Physicians.

As much as 12% of the money spent on NHS hospitals is estimated to go towards treating alcohol induced diseases and problems. But although the conditions are treated, the problem that caused them in the first place—alcohol misuse—is ignored, said the authors of the report.

If the …