TORONTO, June 18, 2013 /CNW/ - The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) has released a summary report outlining policy strategies to reduce the harms related to alcohol, with a focus on the province of Ontario, Canada.
In the report titled 'Reducing Alcohol-Related Harms and Costs in Ontario: A Provincial Summary Report,' CAMH Senior Scientist Norman Giesbrecht outlines Ontario's policy strengths and provides recommendations to help decrease the $2.9 billion attributed annually to the direct and indirect costs of alcohol use in Ontario.
"While there are policy measures in place, there is still work to be done in various areas, such as alcohol pricing and advertising in order to address drinking behaviours that can be harmful," said Dr. Giesbrecht. "For instance, we know that more than 75 per cent of Ontarians consume alcohol, and that approximately 22 per cent of Ontarians drink above the recommended drinking guidelines."
Positioning alcohol use as a public health matter, Dr. Giesbrecht is recommending 10 policy improvements:
"In order to refine and implement these recommendations it will require leadership, commitment to reducing alcohol-related harms and a spirit of collaboration among key stakeholders," said Dr. Giesbrecht.
The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) is Canada's largest mental health and addiction teaching hospital, as well as one of the world's leading research centres in its field. CAMH combines clinical care, research, education, policy development and health promotion to help transform the lives of people affected by mental health and addiction issues. CAMH is fully affiliated with the University of Toronto, and is a Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization Collaborating Centre. For more information, please visit http://www.camh.ca .
For further information:
Media Contact: Michael Torres, CAMH Media Relations (416) 595 6015 or media@camh.ca