Dr Francisco Pascual Pastor is a medical coordinator of the UCA in ALCOI, president of SOCIDROGALCOHOL and consultant of CAARFE

Using his experience in the alcoholism treatment and as pioneer in the organisation of assistance services for dependant people, he explained some of the characteristics he considers essential for the alcoholism treatment. He suggested that a main aspect of this drug is the existent normalisation of its consumption. There is a low perception of the risk that the diary consumption of alcohol involves; the patient does not recognise it as a factor for his or her malaise and usually it goes unnoticed by the professional, masked by the temporary alteration that brings the person to the consulting room. He pointed that the complexity of the diagnosis is defined, from the very beginning, by the infra-diagnosis that is carried out. The motivation to treatment should start in the primary health care, where an evaluation that includes biological, psychological and social aspects must be done. The social environment is a level to be considered because of its participation in the etiopathogenesis of the disorder. He also underlined that with an integrated and integrative approach the patient and the family must be made participant of the treatment, without forgetting that the consumption of legal drugs is the principal consumption to which many relapses in other drugs is related.

Dr. Pascual Pastor suggests a paradigm shift also related to alcohol, work on the motivation from the beginning with the reduction of the consumption, and harm reduction in order to achieve abstinence and the approach to the alcoholism treatment through the comprehensive care that includes assistance and training. Regarding assistance, he highlighted his effort to demand an equal treatment for the addict as any other patient. Regarding training, he underlined the need of specific formation in addictions, which, in addition to be multidisciplinary, should consider knowing how to work as a team.

As president of the Spanish Scientific Society of Studies about Alcohol, Alcoholism and Drug Addiction, he informed that this year “Sociadrogalcohol” promotes the study of the beginning of the consumption. They contemplate ending the stigma of the alcoholic person in order to achieve equality in the treatment and a minimal training to work with addictions.

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