[Only 1 out of 1 000 patients with alcohol dependence problems are reported according to the Driver's Licence Act. Physicians estimate to increase the number of reports some 70 times with a two-year ignition interlock program].

This poll, aimed at general practitioners and dependence specialists, shows that only one out of 1,000 patients diagnosed alcohol-dependent are reported to the county administrative board in accordance with the Swedish Driver's Licence Act. The anticipated negative effect on continued doctor-patient contact stands out as the predominant obstacle to filing a report. Among general practitioners an uncertainty about diagnosing alcohol dependence and alcohol abuse also was an important obstacle. Given the opportunity to participate in a two-year alcolock programme as an alternative to driver's licence revocation, doctors estimate that they would report some 70 times the number of patients. This estimation is obviously subject to considerable uncertainty, but does reflect an important attitude and an expectation that such a report constitutes a positive move from both an individual and a social perspective.