**2.1 Screening and brief intervention in workplace settings**

The workplace is an ideal setting for alcohol and drug user for health prevention and interventions as most of them are employed and spend a lot of time

## *Screening and Brief Intervention in Substance Use Disorders: Its Clinical Utility and Feasibility… DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.107441*

there [36, 37]. Jenkins [38] in 1986 showed that there was a strong correlation between drinking and absence from work in a study of young civil service staff in Britain. In a study from Australia, workplace can be an effective setting to reduce substance-related problems [39]. Hermansson et al. [40], demonstrated the feasibility of screening and delivering a BI at the workplace in Sweden within a routine health check of employees conducted by the occupational health service. Studies show that regular occupational health check-up with screening the substance use at regular intervals is quite effective in early interventions [41, 42]. In the study conducted by Richmond et al. [43], found a significant reduction in the number of drinks consumed by the women in the intervention group in a matched group comparison. Watson et al. [44], found that there was scope within the workplace to promote initiatives in relation to reducing hazardous and harmful levels of alcohol consumption, which was cost-effectiveness, amenable to an assessment of lifestyle issues and promoting health and wellbeing. Hermansson et al. investigated the results of screening and BI in a large transport company (including 990 employees, mainly men, have found that 20% of those screened were drinking hazardously). The results at 12 months showed that the interventions were effective but screening itself acted positively in terms of reducing drinking [45]. The study conducted by Zibe-Piegel and Boerngen-Lacerda [46] recommended the routine practice of screening and BI in the workplace as it was found to be feasible and helpful in earlier detection and referral to treatment services for harmful substance use. Ito et al., conducted RCT on BI at the workplace for heavy drinkers among industrial workers in Japan. The alcohol-free days in the BI group significantly increased by 93.0% at 12 months. The authors concluded that BI at the workplace was effective in increasing the number of alcohol-free days. However, the effectiveness of decreasing alcohol consumption was unclear, which could be explained by alcohol screening itself causing a reduction in drinking [47].
