A survey of alcohol and drug services to general hospitals in Australia.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the structure and function of alcohol and drug services to general hospitals in Australia, and to examine the role psychiatry plays in those services.

METHOD: A survey of 15 large metropolitan hospitals was conducted.

RESULTS

Services differed considerably between hospitals, and psychiatric involvement was not prominent in most.

CONCLUSIONS

One of the challenges is to structure the administration of services so that they have a profile within the general hospital as well as close connection with community services. Psychiatrists must become more proactive in the area to reinforce what they have to offer these patients and to provide mentorship and training to psychiatric trainees in the field.