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The purpose of this paper is to develop an alcohol withdrawal syndrome risk stratification tool that could support the safe discharge of low risk patients from the emergency department.

A retrospective cohort study that included all patients referred to the acute addiction liaison nursing service over one calendar month (n=400, 1–30 April 2016) was undertaken. Bivariate and multivariate modelling identified the significant variables that supported the prediction of severe alcohol withdrawal syndrome (SAWS) in the cohort population.

The Glasgow Modified Alcohol Withdrawal Scale (GMAWS), hours since last drink, fast alcohol screening test (FAST) and systolic blood pressure correctly identified 89 per cent of patients who developed SAWS and 84 per cent of patients that did not. Increasing each component by a score of one is associated with an increase in the odds of SAWS by a factor of 2.76 (95% CI 2.21, 3.45), 1.31 (95% CI 1.24, 1.37), 1.30 (95% CI 1.08, 1.57) and 1.22 (95% CI 1.10, 1.34), respectively.

The research was conducted in a single healthcare system that had a high prevalence of alcohol dependence syndrome (ADS). Second, the developed risk stratification tool was unable to guarantee no risk and lastly, the FAST score previously aligned to severe ADS may have influenced the patients highest GMAWS score.

The tool could help redesign the care pathway for patients who attend the emergency department at risk of SAWS and link low risk patients with community alcohol services better equipped to deal with their physical and psychological needs short and long term supporting engagement, abstinence and prolongation of life.

The tool could help redesign the care pathway for emergency department patients at low risk of SAWS and link them with community alcohol services better equipped to deal with their physical and psychological needs, short and long term, supporting engagement, abstinence and prolongation of life.

The purpose of this paper is to identify published literature from a general hospital setting that may highlight variables implicated in the development of severe alcohol withdrawal syndrome (SAWS) in patients who have alcohol dependence syndrome (ADS).

A systematic literature review was carried out using the electronic databases: MEDLINE, Medline in Process, Cinahl, Embase and PsycINFO from 1989 to 2017. The focus of this search was on English language studies of individuals over 16 years admitted to general hospital with ADS, delirium tremens (DTs), alcohol-related seizure (ARS) or alcohol withdrawal syndrome (AWS).

Of the 205 studies screened, eight met the criteria for inclusion. Six studies were quantitative retrospective cohort and two were retrospective case-control. Six studies investigated risk factors associated with DTs, one examined SAWS and one alcohol kindling. Descriptive analysis was performed to summarise the empirical evidence from studies were 22 statistically significant risk factors were found; including the reason for admission to hospital, daily alcohol consumption, previous DTs and prior ARS. The last two factors mentioned appeared in two studies.

Further research should consider the quality and completeness of the alcohol history data and competence of staff generating the data in retrospective studies.

The paper suggests that the factors linked to SAWS development from the literature may not fully explain why some individuals who have ADS develop SAWS, and others do not.

The purpose of this paper is to ascertain an awareness of the management of the drug misusing guidelines in Glasgow general hospitals.

A brief literature review was carried out to establish the available evidence for the guidelines. Additionally, a survey questionnaire was sent out to junior medical staff requesting their views on the drug misusing guidelines.

A paucity of evidence relating to drug misusing guidelines was found from the literature. The Glasgow Guidelines appear to be a welcome source of information that is both comprehensive and easily accessible for staff. Junior medical staffs have broadly welcomed the guidance but would appreciate additional support on the management of patients prescribed Suboxone.

There should be an increase in training and development for junior medical staff regarding the guideline.

The Glasgow Guidelines are aimed primarily at junior medical staff whose knowledge on drug misusing patients may be scarce. Increased training and awareness should improve the management of drug misusers in general hospitals. Consequently, patients should spent less time in hospital.

The Glasgow acute addiction liaison nurse service provides a unique service to patients with alcohol and drug issues who are admitted to general hospitals in the Glasgow City area. It offers guidance on withdrawal management, educates patients and staff and provides a facility to refer to appropriate community services. Since its foundation in 2005, patient referrals have increased by more than 3,000. Additionally, it has taken on a greater educational role and is more involved in research and evaluation.

A contemporary review of the psychometric properties of the Buss‐Perry Aggression Questionnaire was undertaken to assess its suitability for an alcohol dependent population. Three criteria were used to try to achieve this: factor analysis; internal consistency reliability; and test‐retest reliability. Factor analysis revealed that its structure is remarkably consistent in a number of populations. Internal consistency reliability and test‐retest reliability results scores proved to be mainly above the recommended threshold. A conclusion was reached regarding these results that the Buss‐Perry Aggression Questionnaire is an effective screening tool for aggression in an alcohol dependent population.

Any librarian who has been faced with the problem of cataloguing the course unit booklets supplied by the Open University as the framework of its teaching will have discovered how bibliographically intractable they are. This article seeks first to describe some of the problems thus encountered, and secondly to describe how one institution has attempted to solve them.

Managers often lack the skills and confidence to deal with issues of everyday management such as poor attendance, failure to meet agreed deadlines or to reach required standards of work when these issues involve a racial dimension, or staff respond with counter complaints of harassment due to their sexuality or accusations of insensitivity to their disability.This is a case study of how a large complex social care organisation went about designing and implementing a leadership development programme to equip managers with the skills and confidence necessary to effectively lead a diverse workforce. The case study shows how Lancashire County Council has used executive coaching, management learning sets and mentoring, linked with equality and diversity training and exploiting the potential of the intranet to deliver a co‐ordinated management leadership development programme. The success of this approach has implications for all organisations that have a diverse workforce.

THE ANCIENT and royal burgh of Stirling, at one time the capital of Scotland, was at the turn of the century the county town of Stirlingshire and the centre of a thriving agricultural community. With the exception of a carpet and woollen mill and some neighbouring coal mines, there was little industry in the town. This was reflected in its social structure. There was growing up in the village of Raploch, beneath the castle rock, a sizeable Irish community of labourers and artisans, but of a population of around 20,000 in 1900, middle class businessmen and shopkeepers predominated. The town's structure in turn was reflected in the nature of the Town Council, which, although not always conservative in politics, was generally conservative when faced with innovation, be it a swimming pool or a modern town centre. This might explain why in Stirling the public library movement was late in starting, nearly 25 years after the Public Libraries (Scotland) Act of 1870 authorising the use for library purposes of 1 d. in the £ from the rates. It might also explain why there was some opposition from the Town Council to providing for the upkeep of the library after its foundation.