Free Booze Helps Homeless Addicts, Study Says

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Free Booze Helps Homeless Addicts, Study Says
By Stefanie Kranjec
Reuters
TORONTO (Jan. 3) - Giving homeless alcoholics a regular supply of booze may improve their health and their behavior, the Canadian Medical Association Journal said in a study published on Tuesday.

Seventeen homeless adults, all with long and chronic histories of alcohol abuse, were allowed up to 15 glasses of wine or sherry a day -- a glass an hour from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. -- in the Ottawa-based program, which started in 2002 and is continuing.

After an average of 16 months, the number of times participants got in trouble with the law had fallen 51 percent from the three years before they joined the program, and hospital emergency room visits were down 36 percent.

"Once we give a 'small amount' of alcohol and stabilize the addiction, we are able to provide health services that lead to a reduction in the unnecessary health services they were getting before," said Dr. Jeff Turnbull, one of the authors of the report.

"The alcohol gets them in, builds the trust and then we have the opportunity to treat other medical diseases... It's about improving the quality of life."

http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles?id=n20060103171009990009&cid=936

Paradise said:

:waitasec:


Free Booze Helps Homeless Addicts, Study Says
By Stefanie Kranjec
Reuters
TORONTO (Jan. 3) - Giving homeless alcoholics a regular supply of booze may improve their health and their behavior, the Canadian Medical Association Journal said in a study published on Tuesday.

Seventeen homeless adults, all with long and chronic histories of alcohol abuse, were allowed up to 15 glasses of wine or sherry a day -- a glass an hour from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. -- in the Ottawa-based program, which started in 2002 and is continuing.

After an average of 16 months, the number of times participants got in trouble with the law had fallen 51 percent from the three years before they joined the program, and hospital emergency room visits were down 36 percent.

"Once we give a 'small amount' of alcohol and stabilize the addiction, we are able to provide health services that lead to a reduction in the unnecessary health services they were getting before," said Dr. Jeff Turnbull, one of the authors of the report.

"The alcohol gets them in, builds the trust and then we have the opportunity to treat other medical diseases... It's about improving the quality of life."

http://news.aol.com/topnews/articles?id=n20060103171009990009&cid=936

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OMG, as if 15 glasses of wine in a single day is a small amount!

For a person who has a chronic, long term and pervasive addiction to booze, yeah 15 glasses is considered a small amount. It comes down to tolerance.......

Heck I know of college kids who have no booze addiction, consuming this amount of booze, if not more at a "party night".

As for me, I am hammered after two glasses of wine...........I have a very low tolerance to booze because I don't drink often.......

Fifteen glasses of wine is no small amount by any standards. One wonders what health issues these people have that are more important than the liver damage that is surely being developed.

Sally said:

Fifteen glasses of wine is no small amount by any standards. One wonders what health issues these people have that are more important than the liver damage that is surely being developed.

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Maybe this is an economy move, to shorten their lives, so they have less chance of being a long-term drain on the economy.

Hair of the dog that bit them????

Buzzm1 said:

Maybe this is an economy move, to shorten their lives, so they have less chance of being a long-term drain on the economy.

Hair of the dog that bit them????

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Indeed. Then again fine wine can get pricey. A few gallons of Everclear might be more "therapeutic."

I doubt they're providing anything like fine wine - it's probably something that aspires to come in a box!

Seems to make a bit of sense there, and maybe if it is a little wait to get the wine each time, giving them a little will help them to cut down, trail off. Seems like a good program.

Details said:

I doubt they're providing anything like fine wine - it's probably something that aspires to come in a box!

Seems to make a bit of sense there, and maybe if it is a little wait to get the wine each time, giving them a little will help them to cut down, trail off. Seems like a good program.

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Some of the box wine is good--at least here in CA. Is this something like medicating them so there will be fewer problems--nothing like a drunk who hasn't had his/her alcohol fix for awhile. They can sit around all day and drink, without hassling the passersby for money to buy cheap booze. Add a little culture.

I wonder how many high school and college kids will pretend to be homeless to get free alcohol? Or how many homeless people who really weren't alcoholics will now become alcoholics because they will get free booze? This seems kind of risky to me.

Where can I sign up? :angel: :crazy:

Yeah, that's why I said it would aspire to be box wine. I actually heard that the box often keeps it fresher than the old cork and bottle.

It's one drink per hour, so not a lot of encouragement probably to people who want to go get drunk free.

Details said:

Yeah, that's why I said it would aspire to be box wine. I actually heard that the box often keeps it fresher than the old cork and bottle.

It's one drink per hour, so not a lot of encouragement probably to people who want to go get drunk free.

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I heard they gather in groups, and draw straws to see which one gets to drink all their glasses of wine for that hour. Some get drunk earlier, some get drunk later, but they all get drunk.

It also depends on the size of the glass---LOL.

The intent is about harm reduction. These are hard core homeless people who will drink "liquid" that contains "alcohol".

It is about getting them medical care also. If a person has an addiction, that is all that is in their brains and they are concerned about. Getting their next "fix" comes second to long term health problems that have been ignored for years, since they have been homeless for so long.

Their health comes second. So offer them their choice of addiction, so that it is taken care, so other can address more urgent matters: A stable place to stay, food, clothing, counselling, and health care.

If there has been liver damage, it has already started and progressed.........it is not like a person who had a clear and pervasive addiction to booze is not going to have liver damage after a 20-25 year addiction.

May I also remind the posters that in England they do this same thing for people who have an addiction to "smack".

They give the people either methadone or "smack" so they can actually keep a job, have friends and enjoy a productive quality of life. They don't have to stand on a street corner, steal, etc. to get their next "fix".

So if this programs keeps people off the streets, keeps them from drinking "after shave", and keeps them from being victim and be victimized, then it again is all about harm reduction.

I very much doubt any college kid is going to "sign" up as these are hard core, long term homeless people are well known on the street. Street workers usually know who these people are. Sometimes the "incentive" for them to live at a shelter and not on the street is this program. Their addiction can be addressed.

Also the college kids will have to live at a shelter with homeless people to get free booze. Does not sound like a smart decision to me, especially for a "college" kid, they won't be able to attend college at that point. This is a long term stragety, not something that happens once a month or so.

So lets see: You don't attend college, have to live in a homeless shelter, with people who have "questionable" character, and "personal hygine" to get free booze.

Please...... a "somewhat" decent bottle of wine is like 8.00. I guess none of the fine Merlot really makes it their way..........

CyberLaw said:

The intent is about harm reduction. These are hard core homeless people who will drink "liquid" that contains "alcohol".

It is about getting them medical care also. If a person has an addiction, that is all that is in their brains and they are concerned about. Getting their next "fix" comes second to long term health problems that have been ignored for years, since they have been homeless for so long.

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I am sure that the theory of getting homeless people to come in and get their alcohol fix on "safe" alcohol so they can eventually be treated and perhaps placed in a permanent position in society is wonderful in theory. I am not sure that the government needs to set themselves up as pushers of alcohol for a population that has given up a place in society to float from day to day in an alcoholic haze at the taxpayers expense.

The government has anti-drug programs, anti-alcohol programs, anti-gambling programs, and rehibilitation programs for all of these people who are trying to recover from the effects of using drugs, alcohol, and gambling. These programs are funded with tax payer monies. But these people who take advantage of these government funded programs are trying to kick the habit that brought them to this point in their lives. I am doubtful that a homeless alcoholic would want to rehabilitate themselves just because the government has decided to give them free alcohol and perhaps down the line treat their other medical or mental problems. Maybe I am a little jaded from my tax money paying for outrageous programs that mostly do not work in the long run. Perhaps the money that is now earmarked for alcohol for homeless persons should be used to help the working poor afford health insurance.

Like I said perhaps I have become jaded from watching my government use my hard earned tax money on programs that do not work in the long run, but this sounds in my opinion like a pie in the sky theory that will be another experiment in dumping tax payer money down a toilet.

Thundar said:

SNIP

Like I said perhaps I have become jaded from watching my government use my hard earned tax money on programs that do not work in the long run, but this sounds in my opinion like a pie in the sky theory that will be another experiment in dumping tax payer money down a toilet.

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Kind of reminds me of the war in Iraq.

Sounds like this one has already proven it's merit with statistics - no pie in the sky. Less crime, less waste of emergency room services - that's a huge cost savings. Better health - I really don't care about, but the waste of emergency room services, and crime - seems worth it.

As eveyone knows the health care system is paid though our taxes. It seems always to be in "flux".

So if a person gets 15 glasses of wine a day, compared with an ER visit, or admission. It is well worth it.

Also, the Police are not off the street arresting this person for public drunkness.

Legal Aid, court time, jail time all of the accumulted justice system personal.

Plus again, better health, so of course less "draw" on the system.

I know about 15 years ago, just to get in the ER door was 500.00 and that is even before you get to see a Doctor or any tests.

My dad was in the emergency room in December for kidney stones and the grand total of his visit was around $3500. Some of that came from the two catscans that cost $950 each. I'm just glad he has insurance.