Citation

Toomey TL, Erickson DJ, Lenk KM, Kilian GR, Perry CL, Wagenaar AC. Addiction 2008; 103(3): 405-13; discussion 414-5.

Affiliation

Division of Epidemiology and Community Health, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55454, USA. toomey@epi.umn.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2008, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/j.1360-0443.2007.02077.x

PMID

18821881

Abstract

AIMS: To evaluate effects of a training program for owners/managers of alcohol establishments-Alcohol Risk Management (ARM)-on: (i) propensity to sell alcohol to obviously intoxicated patrons; and (ii) changing establishment-level policies/practices. DESIGN: We assigned alcohol establishments randomly to intervention (full-ARM) and delayed-intervention/control (ARM Express) conditions. SETTING: One large metropolitan area in Midwestern United States. PARTICIPANTS: Owners and managers at 231 on-premise alcohol establishments (i.e. bars, restaurants). INTERVENTION: Training programs consisted of one-to-one sessions with the owner/manager at each establishment. The goal of training was to help owners/managers to select and implement alcohol control policies in their establishments. The full-ARM training consisted of four one-to-one sessions and the ARM Express was a single session. MEASUREMENTS: We measured intervention effects through baseline and follow-up pseudo-intoxicated alcohol purchase attempts (i.e. feigning intoxication while attempting to purchase alcohol) and telephone surveys of owners/managers at alcohol establishments. FINDINGS: Sales rates to pseudo-intoxicated patrons reduced 23% (relative to delayed-intervention/control condition) at the first follow-up purchase attempt (P = 0.06) but returned to baseline levels 3 months later. On average, establishments selected 13 of 18 recommended policies, but in multivariate models we observed no significant differences at follow-up in reported policies/practices across establishments. CONCLUSIONS: Reliance on manager training to promote responsible establishment alcohol policies is not sufficient to prevent illegal alcohol sales to obviously intoxicated patrons and to reduce alcohol-related problems.

Language: en