Impact of banning alcohol on outpatient visits in Barrow, Alaska
A. Y. Chiu, P. E. Perez and R. N. Parker
North Slope Borough Physician Services, Barrow, Alaska, USA.
CONTEXT: Community availability of alcohol affects alcohol consumption
patterns and alcohol-related health and social problems. In Barrow, Alaska,
an isolated community at the northernmost reaches of the United States,
during a 33-month period, possession and importation of alcohol were legal,
completely banned, made legal again, and then banned again. OBJECTIVE: To
determine the impact of these public policy changes on alcohol-related
outpatient visits at the area hospital. DESIGN: Retrospective review of
outpatient records; time-series analysis of alcohol-related visits with
respect to community alcohol policy. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Total monthly
outpatient visits for alcohol-related problems. RESULTS: There was a
substantial decrease in the number of alcohol-related outpatient visits
when the ban on possession and importation was imposed compared with
baseline. When the ban was lifted, outpatient visits increased; when the
ban was reimposed, the number of outpatient visits again decreased.
Interrupted time-series analyses confirm that the alcohol ban, its lifting,
and its reimposition had a statistically significant and negative effect on
the number of alcohol-related outpatient visits (P<.05). CONCLUSION: In
a geographically isolated community, the prohibition of alcohol can be an
effective public health intervention, reducing the health problems
associated with alcohol use.
