A new program for reducing alcohol‐related harms and stigma in people with alcohol use disorders

What is it about?

Less than half of people with alcohol use disorder ('alcohol addiction') received appropriate treatment for it in France. Barriers to treatment uptake include stigmatization and fear of abstinence. We assessed the effectiveness of the French program 'Choizitaconso', based on controlled drinking (rather than abstinence), which focuses on alcohol-related harm reduction and stigmatisation. This study demonstrates the effectiveness of the Choizitaconso program on community-validated outcomes, especially internalised stigma.

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Photo by Lesia on Unsplash

Photo by Lesia on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This is the first community-based therapeutic patient education program relying on controlled-drinking principles to be assessed in France. Choizitaconso may help attract people for whom abstinence has been a barrier to seeking treatment. By teaching psychosocial and coping skills rather than focusing on alcohol consumption, this program may also meet people specific needs at different stages of their treatment irrespective of their objective in terms of alcohol consumption.

Perspectives