Media Release
From: New Zealand Medical Association (NZMA)Key points
1. Te Pou o te Whakaaro Nui leads national workforce planning and development for the mental health, addiction and disability sectors. This includes Matua Raḵi who lead addiction workforce development.
2. ADOM (Alcohol and Drug Outcome Measure) is a self rated tool for people that access Alcohol & Other Drug services to help them reflect on their drug use, health and wellbeing, and recovery.
3. The analysis of ADOM data from community AOD services found that reduction in alcohol use is likely to have a positive impact on lifestyle and wellbeing, especially mental health, social relationships and physical health.
4. Even one day’s alcohol reduction can show benefits to lifestyle and wellbeing; more days equates to more benefit.
5. ADOM as an outcome measure has a primary goal of feedback to those that access services, but the more collections, the greater the analysis possible to show best practice for the end beneficiary of services.
Summary
Using established research methods, it has been possible to analyse data collected from people accessing services at the start and end of treatment for their alcohol-related issues. This analysis has shown that reducing alcohol days of use has a positive impact on lifestyle and wellbeing. The sector often discusses reducing harm, this paper shows increased benefits, a paradigm shift in thinking from reduction of a negative to increased positive.
