Screening for substance misuse and brief interventions
How to screen for alcohol and other drug use with standard drinks, AUDIT, AUDIT-C and the WHO ASSIST, how to read urine drug screens and alcohol biomarkers, and how to deliver a brief intervention (FRAMES) and know when to refer instead.
Tier 1Medical sciences concept
Written with AI assistance and fact-checked against the sources below. For exam study, not clinical decisions. How notes are made
At a glance
- Ask every adult, and every inpatient, about alcohol, tobacco, prescribed drugs of dependence and illicit drugs. Screening finds hazardous use before harm; the admission is a chance to act.
- Alcohol: quantify in standard drinks against NHMRC 2020 (no more than 10 a week, no more than 4 on any day), then use AUDIT-C or AUDIT.
- Other drugs: the WHO ASSIST scores risk for each substance and links the score to an action.
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Sources
- Guidelines for the Treatment of Alcohol Problems (Haber PS, Riordan BC, eds)AU/NZUniversity of Sydney for the Australian Government Department of Health, 2021
- Australian guidelines to reduce health risks from drinking alcoholAU/NZNational Health and Medical Research Council, 2020
- Guidelines for preventive activities in general practice (the Red Book), 10th editionAU/NZRoyal Australian College of General Practitioners, 10th edition, living web guideline (accessed November 2026)
- The Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST): manual for use in primary careWorld Health Organization, 2010
- Humeniuk R, Ali R, Babor TF et al. Validation of the Alcohol, Smoking And Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST). Addiction 2008;103:1039-47AU/NZAddiction, 2008
- Bush K, Kivlahan DR, McDonell MB et al. The AUDIT alcohol consumption questions (AUDIT-C): an effective brief screening test for problem drinking. Arch Intern Med 1998;158:1789-95Archives of Internal Medicine, 1998
- Kaner EF, Beyer FR, Muirhead C et al. Effectiveness of brief alcohol interventions in primary care populations. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2018;2:CD004148Cochrane, 2018
- McQueen J, Howe TE, Allan L et al. Brief interventions for heavy alcohol users admitted to general hospital wards. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2011;8:CD005191Cochrane, 2011
- Palmer AJ, Connor JP, Clark PJ. Alcohol use disorder: an Australian perspective on screening, diagnosis, treatment and prevention. Intern Med J 2026;56:521-32AU/NZInternal Medicine Journal, 2026
- Humeniuk R, Ali R, Babor T et al. A randomized controlled trial of a brief intervention for illicit drugs linked to the Alcohol, Smoking and Substance Involvement Screening Test (ASSIST) in clients recruited from primary health-care settings in four countries. Addiction 2012;107:957-66AU/NZAddiction, 2012
- Last updated
- 14 November 2026
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