Pubdate: Mon, 14 Apr 2014
Source: Herald, The (Glasgow, UK)
Copyright: 2014 Herald & Times Group
Contact:  http://www.heraldscotland.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4784

THIRD OF SCOTS TURN UP AT WORK SUFFERING FROM DRINK OR DRUGS

One in three of the working population of Scotland has turned up at
work under the influence of alcohol or other drugs, a ground-breaking
survey has revealed.

More than 36% have had a drink or used drugs just one or two hours
before starting their shift, according to the unique poll.

Cannabis, cocaine and ecstasy as well as alcohol were the substances
most commonly taken. The finding is just one of a number of insights
provided by the world's largest drugs survey, involving tens of
thousands of people, which has published results for Scotland for the
first time today.

Well over half (58%) of those who completed the questionnaire in
Scotland recorded potentially harmful drinking habits and were at
increased risk of liver disease, stomach ulcers, high blood pressure
and other health problems.

Dr Evelyn Gillan, chief executive of Alcohol Focus Scotland, said:
"The Global Drugs Survey highlights, once again, that alcohol is the
drug of choice in Scotland."

In total, 631 people from Scotland completed the Global Drugs Survey
which aims to provide a snapshot of what drugs are being used and how
they are having an impact. Of these 7.2%, had such high scores for
alcohol use, it suggested they were addicted. Many of these drinkers
were not aware they had a serious problem - one-third thought their
consumption was average.

Adam Winstock, consultant psychiatrist and addiction specialist behind
the survey, said: "The thing that is most damning is how clueless
people are. The higher the drinker, the more deluded you become."

The percentage of dependent drinkers in Scotland was the third highest
out of the 15 countries in the survey, only falling behind the
Republic of Ireland and Belgium.

Dr Winstock added: "There is a beautiful sense of everyone else is
drinking like me and it is just OK. The thing that changes people's
behaviour is whether they think what they are doing is abnormal or
places them at risk and why would you possibly think about changing
your behaviour if there is no reason to. That is the challenge for
public health. How do you get people to wake up to the fact that your
behaviour isn't like everyone else?"

Many Scottish drinkers did take measures to moderate their drinking.
Just over one-third said they usually alternated alcoholic drinks with
water, 87% eat before starting to drink and 81% have at least two
alcohol-free days a week. Most said taking these precautions did not
reduce the pleasure of drinking.

Dr Winstock, a senior lecturer at King's College London, and his team
are releasing a potentially controversial "user's guide to safe and
more enjoyable drug use" based on their survey findings from around
the world this week.

More than 70% of Scottish respondents told the survey they had been
hungover at work - similar to the finding for the UK as a whole - but
a higher proportion than most other countries involved. One-quarter of
participants in Scotland had used drugs including alcohol within four
to 12 hours of starting work in the past year, and a further 26% had
done so at some point.

Dr Gillan said a culture had developed where "excessive drinking has
become the norm rather than the exception".

She added: "Being in work under the influence of alcohol or hungover
can directly impact on workplace productivity and safety. Heavy
drinking can have a long-term effect on employee work performance,
including sickness absence, inefficiency, poor decision-making and
damaged customer relations."

A Scottish Government spokesman said: "We are well aware of this
issue, with an average of almost 700 people admitted to hospital every
week due to alcohol."

The Global Drugs Survey researchers encourage people to look at their
own levels of drinking and drug use using www.drugsmeter.com and
www.drinksmeter.com.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D