Identifying Alcohol Use Disorder in the Hospitalized Patient

Course overview

Alcohol remains one of the most abused drugs in the world. It affects an estimated 6.5% of the U.S. population at some point in their lifetime, and many of these people become patients in acute care (Ries et al., 2014). Patients with acute and chronic alcohol abuse are frequently admitted to the hospital, but their admitting diagnoses often overshadow the alcohol addiction. This educational course presents a comprehensive profile of the alcoholic patient for early identification and intervention. The goal of this course is to provide nurses with the skills needed to identify alcohol use disorder (AUD) in their hospitalized patients and to intervene on their behalf.