New Alcohol Check for Devon Residents

A new test to get us thinking about how much we drink is being trialled in Devon.

Pharmacists will use ten questions to find out if the amount of alcohol a person is drinking is within healthy limits.

Around 100,000 people in the county drink alcohol at hazardous or harmful levels - almost 20,000 are dependent.

Kristian Tomlin who manages the county's Drugs and Alcohol team has been talking to Heart about the free and confidential test: "they are asked about whether they drink first thing in the morning, whether they haven't done things they might be expected to do for instance"

If people score highly on the test they will then be referred to a specialist. Kristian says they are trying to reach a certain type: "people who are on certain kinds of medication, people with perhaps anxiety and we are looking to try and identify people who need help to address their drinking so maybe people who are drinking at harmful levels or dependent levels"

To listen to our interview with Kristian Tomblin CLICK HERE