TY - JOUR

T1 - Working with the police service and homeless services in North West England to reduce alcohol harms

T2 - A feasibility study of a tailored Blue Light approach

AU - Irizar, Patricia

AU - Vicary, Emily

AU - Glossop, Zoe

AU - Waller, Gillian

AU - Lightowlers, Carly

AU - Quigg, Zara

AU - Roper, Louise

AU - Gilmore, Ian

AU - Coulton, Simon

AU - Newbury-Birch, Dorothy

AU - Goodwin, Laura

PY - 2024/4/30

Y1 - 2024/4/30

N2 - Deaths caused by alcohol are increasing in England and 80 % of people with alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are not in treatment. The Blue Light approach (Alcohol Change UK) is an initiative to support people with AUDs who are not in treatment. This study aimed to tailor the Blue Light approach (combined with alcohol identification and alcohol brief interventions [ABI] training) for police officers and homeless service staff in North West England, and to qualitatively evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the training. The Blue Light approach was tailored using co-production activities, based on Transdisciplinary Action Research. Full-day and half-day training sessions were delivered to the police (full-day N = 14, half-day N = 54) and homeless service staff (full-day N = 11, half-day N = 32), in local police stations and online (four half-day sessions). Semi-structured interviews (N = 23) were conducted to evaluate implementation and integration, analysing the qualitative data in line with Normalisation Process Theory. Four themes were identified, each with two to three sub-themes, reflecting: (i) the importance of training for working practice, (ii) implementation of the interventions, (iii) changes to relationships within and between organizations, and (iv) recommendations for further changes to the training. Differences in findings across the organizations (police versus homeless services) and by training type attended (full-day versus half-day, in-person versus online) are presented. There is evidence to suggest that the training has provided worthwhile knowledge and intervention techniques that can become embedded into working practices. Nevertheless, structural barriers were apparent, primarily within the police service, with clear disparities between recognising the value of the training and what is achievable in practice, given the competing demands. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.]

AB - Deaths caused by alcohol are increasing in England and 80 % of people with alcohol use disorders (AUDs) are not in treatment. The Blue Light approach (Alcohol Change UK) is an initiative to support people with AUDs who are not in treatment. This study aimed to tailor the Blue Light approach (combined with alcohol identification and alcohol brief interventions [ABI] training) for police officers and homeless service staff in North West England, and to qualitatively evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of the training. The Blue Light approach was tailored using co-production activities, based on Transdisciplinary Action Research. Full-day and half-day training sessions were delivered to the police (full-day N = 14, half-day N = 54) and homeless service staff (full-day N = 11, half-day N = 32), in local police stations and online (four half-day sessions). Semi-structured interviews (N = 23) were conducted to evaluate implementation and integration, analysing the qualitative data in line with Normalisation Process Theory. Four themes were identified, each with two to three sub-themes, reflecting: (i) the importance of training for working practice, (ii) implementation of the interventions, (iii) changes to relationships within and between organizations, and (iv) recommendations for further changes to the training. Differences in findings across the organizations (police versus homeless services) and by training type attended (full-day versus half-day, in-person versus online) are presented. There is evidence to suggest that the training has provided worthwhile knowledge and intervention techniques that can become embedded into working practices. Nevertheless, structural barriers were apparent, primarily within the police service, with clear disparities between recognising the value of the training and what is achievable in practice, given the competing demands. [Abstract copyright: Copyright © 2023 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.]

KW - Qualitative

KW - Alcohol

KW - Framework analysis

KW - Feasibility

KW - Normalisation process theory

U2 - 10.1016/j.josat.2023.209259

DO - 10.1016/j.josat.2023.209259

M3 - Journal article

C2 - 38103833

VL - 159

JO - Journal of substance use and addiction treatment

JF - Journal of substance use and addiction treatment

SN - 2949-8759

M1 - 209259

ER -