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Mobile alcohol recovery truck launched
A 65-foot truck designed to treat those who will end up having one too many this Christmas has launched – the first of its kind in the UK.
The 65-foot truck will first launch in the South West of England before being rolled out across the UK in the next 18 months.
The Alcohol Recovery Centre (ARC) is a state-of-the-art 65-foot-long vehicle that delivers on-site support from emergency care practitioners to people who have become vulnerable due to alcohol.
The first vehicle has been unveiled in the South West of England with a national roll out planned across the UK in the next 18 months.
The initiative has been made possible by a grant of £500,000 awarded by the National Licensed Trade Association (NLTA), a not for profit organisation formed to raise awareness of alcohol consumption, with funds raised from one of its initiatives – Barcode.
Barcode is a training programme for those working in the drinks industry that aims to redefine the way we think about alcohol.
Andy Bishop, managing director of the NLTA, said: “I am delighted to be involved with this pioneering national scheme that will have a profound effect on the licensed trade and in turn reduce the pressure of anti-social drinking on the emergency services, maintain ongoing health education and fund increased community support. Although we look forward to seeing the success of the project across the UK, our aim is that, through education, there will be no need for such assistance in our society in the future.”
The NHS admitted almost 10 million patients in England between 2012 and 2013 with problems related to alcohol.
Pete Brown from South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust said: “This specially designed mobile treatment centre will be used over the festive period to provide an alcohol recovery centre (ARC). This will allow us to provide a better service to the public through joint working with our partners; not only for the patients who are cared for at the facility but for anyone else who needs the services of the ambulance, police or hospital. Patients are given a full assessment by a paramedic on arrival to ensure they don’t have any other symptoms or injuries that need treatment. Then, under the supervision of the ambulance staff, they are able to sleep off the alcohol, drink water and warm up before being collected by friends or relatives or being sober enough to safely make their own way home. ”