From International to National: How to mobilize society to act responsibly toward the alcohol

issueSandra Radoš Krnel1,

Maja Zorko1, Tanja Kamin2, Vesna Kerstin Petrič3

1 National Institute of Public Health, Slovenia2 Faculty of Social Sciences, Univesity of Ljubljana, Slovenia

3 Ministry of Health, Slovenia

Social costs of alcohol

• Costs to society due to the alcohol are numerous and well documented

• In Slovenia: • Tangible + intangible costs• Lack of precise data on alcohol related financial burden

– Work absenteeism and premature deaths 100 % alcohol attributable causes estimated to be 37 million euros.

Alcohol and Slovenia

Registered consumption of pure alcohol per adult (aged 15 and more) in litres

15+ 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007Slovenija* 10,60 11,24 12,98 11,60 11,20 13,50 10,29 12,20 11,00

Slovenija** 10,18 11,35 11,66 11,80 11,66 - - - -

EU15** 11,54 11,39 11,38 11,39 11,43 - - - -EU** 11,15 11,04 11,02 11,05 11,11 - - - -EUR-A** 11,47 11,34 11,32 11,31 11,36 - - - -

- no data* Institute for public health Slovenia (www.ivz-rs.si) ** European Health for All database (HFA-DB) 2007 (http://www.euro.who.int/HFADB)

Challenges• AP stakeholders (not clear who does what, how and how

much, with what population and for what reasons)• AP stakeholders know each other poorly (or not at all), bad

connections• Initiatives are dispersed across the various fields• Everyone works on its own “garden” and does not see the

whole• Duplication of work (inefficient consumption of funds)• It is hard to get information and data (legislation, research,

projects, institutions)• Public gets most information from sources close to alcohol

industry (politics’ connection with industry)• Stakeholders’ lack of knowledge on measures of AP and their

efficiency, communication with public etc.

First step

• In 2006 Slovenia decided to take active role in the EU project Building Capacity– Strong support of MoH, high awareness of expert part of MoH about

the problem and search for best solutions– Connection with the Slovenian presidency of EU in 2008– Opportunity for EU networking and transfer of good practices

• Why?– Mobilisation on national level– Possible change of attitude towards alcohol– Political change? (easier implementation)– Inclusion and providing better information to professionals – Reduction of damage and expenses caused by excessive use of

alcohol

Building Capacity - Implementing Coordinated

Alcohol Policy in Europe

• The aims of the project: – to broaden the network base, bringing together a wide range of

organizations, including NGOs, as well as research, information, consumer protection, transport, commercial communications, public health, health professionals, and partners addressing youth, mental health and accidents and injuries

– to develop an inventory of country based experiences– to undertake economic and health impact assessment of policy

options– to build capacity at country, regional and municipal levels for

effective programme and policy implementation through conferences and advocacy training events

Initiative for MOSA project

INFORMATION ABOUT (lack of information)

THAT ALCOHOL IS A PROBLEM for individuals, society, state

Review of research in the area of alcoholReview of selected indicators of health

WHO? Review of actors in the area of alcohol in Slovenia

WHAT? Review of the areas of work of actors

HOW?Review of programmes of encouraging healthy lifestyleReview of preventive programmesReview of treatment programmes

POLITICAL WILL Legal bases, political pledges…

EXPERT PRESSURE

Data on the burden of negative consequences of alcohol, e.g. illnesses, absenteeism, accidents, economic burden, etc.)Data on the cost effectiveness of measures and preventive programmes

COMMUNITY PRESSURE Mobilizing the communities, changing the communal attitude towards hazardous behaviours

Preconditions to design effective measures to tackle

alcohol problem

Second step

• In 2008 the initiative for the transfer of ideas from BC to national level - project MOSA – mobilizing society for more responsible attitude towards alcohol in Slovenia:– to provide analytic screening of alcohol issue related activities – to build a network of various relevant stakeholders working with the

alcohol issue in Slovenia and consequently – to lower the alcohol related social costs trough the mobilization of

society

MOSA is • Entity• Network• Tool

MOSA has been developing databases with public access

MOSA

Interactive webpage

MOSA results

• Better use of the limited funds aimed for the alcohol issue in Slovenia

• Avoiding the duplication of research and activities (now it is easy to establish what has already been done and continue from there)

• Effect of synergy trough the connection of various institutions and stakeholders in the field of alcohol policy

Conclusions

international national

societal costs of alcohol

society mobilisation