East Surrey Hospital had an Alcohol Awareness Week display by the entrance to the hospital to engage patients and visitors, run by their Alcohol Liaison Clinical Nurse specialist. She also ran a teaching session for the hospital’s junior doctors.
November 2018 |
9 minutes
Here are just a few of the activities local authorities, pharmacies, GP surgeries, charities, workplaces and other local organisations across the country organised for Alcohol Awareness Week 2018 to raise awareness about alcohol and signpost people to more information and support.
Would you like to take part in Alcohol Awareness Week? Sign up to receive free digital resources, ideas and updates.
Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust
For next Alcohol Awareness Week... Do you work for a hospital? How about setting up a display? You could also think about offering training for members of staff, both to help them in their work with patients and so they can get support if they are struggling with alcohol themselves.
Drink Wise, Age Well
Now in its fourth year, Drink Wise, Age Well is committed to ensuring alcohol treatment and support is available to people at all stages in life, particularly older adults. In the spirit of Alcohol Awareness Week 2018’s theme of Change, an advocacy group of programme participants and volunteers came together to plan a Calling Time for Change Event in London on 21 November. The group invited key stakeholders and politicians to work with them to co-produce a Call for Change which will ensure older adults with lived experience can have their voices heard and share solutions to improve alcohol policy, treatment and support. For further information contact [email protected]
For next Alcohol Awareness Week... Could your charity use Alcohol Awareness Week as a jumping off point to create change? Let us know – we would love to support you.
The Harbour Centre, Plymouth
The Harbour Centre leads and manages the integrated community drug and alcohol recovery services in Plymouth. They ran several events, including an alcohol awareness stand from 19-23 November at Derriford Hospital, (wo)manned by the Alcohol Assertive Outreach Team. They also ran an alcohol-free charity quiz night on 20 November at Devonport Guildhall, raising funds for disadvantaged children in Plymouth.
While Harbour hosted the event, most of the organisation was undertaken by service users working really hard on their recovery from alcohol (and other substances), and who wish to give back to their community. Harbour also showcased some of the amazing arts and crafts created by service users (and staff) to highlight the incredible benefits of art therapy. Contact [email protected] for more information on either event.
For next Alcohol Awareness Week... There are lots of creative ways to get involved with Alcohol Awareness Week – an alcohol-free event is a great idea! If you work for an alcohol service, could you engage service users in planning events for the week?
Fife Council Madras Community Use Team
Fife Council Madras Community Use Team went all out for Alcohol Awareness Week! On Monday 19 November the team held a community evening session at Madras Community College. Anyone could drop in and design and taste their own mocktail, find out more about alcohol and maybe even sign up for Dry January®. This event was being supported by Morrisons. On Wednesday they held a lunch time focus group for senior pupils, with issue-based discussion and fun activities. On Thursday and Friday they held similar sessions for younger pupils with visual aids, quizzes and discussion.
For next Alcohol Awareness Week... We love the idea of a ‘design your own mocktail’ session – it’s fun, inexpensive and a great way to get talking about alcohol. And how about looking for sponsorship from a local business?
Royal Mail
The brilliant HR team at Royal Mail ran a display with facts and figures about alcohol. That’s not all – they also put on an alcohol-free quiz about alcohol, with a prize for the winning team! On a more serious note, they advertised confidential help for anyone anyone with concerns regarding their own or someone else’s alcohol use; people were able to talk in private to the team’s Mental Health Champion.
For next Alcohol Awareness Week... Could you run Alcohol Awareness Week in your workplace? Each year workplaces in the UK lose an estimated 167,000 working years to alcohol – so helping your team to develop healthier drinking behaviours can only be a good thing! Sign up for Alcohol Awareness Week resources to find out more about alcohol in the workplace.
Boots Hatfield Town Centre
Planning for a public health event as part of their training, pre-registration pharmacists in Hatfield Town Centre found that alcohol dependence has a higher incidence than many other health conditions in Hertfordshire, and decided to run an event for Alcohol Awareness Week. Their aim was to help people to learn about their limits and improve their knowledge about units. They ran a display and event using our free Alcohol Awareness Week resources.
For next Alcohol Awareness Week... Could your local pharmacy get involved with the week? Use our free resources to set up a display and increase people’s understanding of alcohol.
Are you running an event, display or campaign for Alcohol Awareness Week? Let us know! We would love to know what you’re planning.
