Hospitalization for patients with alcohol use disorder: A teachable moment
“Help me stop doing this.”
Mr. G was a 55-year-old homeless man who uttered these words to us during his fifth hospitalization for problems related to his alcohol use: intoxication, falls and alcohol withdrawal. He was on a downward spiral through the hospital’s revolving door and felt helpless. As a medical team, we felt helpless too. We did not know how to address his real problem — his cycle of addiction.
Hospitalized …