Alcohol-related hospital admissions in Chester up 50%

Jan 14 2010 Chester Chronicle

THE number of people admitted to hospital due to alcohol-related harm in Chester district has soared by more than 50% over five years.

Admissions of people with diseases or injuries attributed to alcohol climbed from 1,564 to 2,377 between 2003/04 and 2008/09.

This represents a 52% increase although the figures now appear to have reached a plateau.

And the rate of deaths per 100,000 people specifically attributable to alcohol is also rising for females.

For women, it rose from 15.9 in 2003 to 17.1 in 2007, while the male figure has seen a slight decrease over the same period from 43.5 to 41.6.

Figures released by the North West Public Health Observatory are an attempt to assess the impact of alcohol on local communities, based on factors such as hospital admissions, premature deaths and crime.

On a positive note, alcohol-related crime, including sexual offences, are on the decrease in Chester district.

The statistics show the North West region has England’s biggest problem with alcohol. A table of blackspots includes seven areas in the region including Halton, Liverpool and Manchester.

Experts warn alcohol-related disease is on the rise across the country. In 2006/07 there were around 800,000 alcohol-related admissions in England – up 9% in a year.

Local areas least affected by alcohol were mostly in the south east or eastern regions of the country.

Professor Mark Bellis, director of the Observatory, said: “Rises in alcohol-related health problems reflect not only weekend binge drinking but also how use of alcohol on a nightly basis continues to erode our health.”