Engaging General Practitioners in the Management of Hazardous and Harmful Alcohol Consumption: Results of a Meta-Analysis.

A systematic review was undertaken of studies that test the effectiveness of different strategies used to increase general practitioners' rates of screening for and giving advice about hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption. Resources were MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cinahl and the Cochrane Library. Inclusion criteria were those of the Effective Practice and Organisation of Care Group of the Cochrane Collaboration. A meta-analysis was undertaken, using a random effects model, of 15 programs identified in 12 trials. Effect sizes, calculated using the logged odds ratio, were adjusted by inverse variance weights to control for the sample sizes of the studies. In the results, analysis of the intervention groups resulted in screening and advice-giving rates of 45% and analysis of the comparison groups resulted in rates of 32%. The weighted mean effect size was heterogeneous. It was concluded that although the small numbers of programs studied suggest caution be used in interpreting the results, it seems it is possible to increase the engagement of general practitioners in screening and giving advice for hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved)