Background and Significance

The prevalence of alcohol problems is high in medical settings, in which there is an opportunity to identify alcohol problems and intervene. But physicians receive little effective education regarding alcohol problems and often fail to identify them in practice. Educational efforts about alcohol and health disparities are often separated from more mainstream medical topics and marginalized. Efforts are needed to translate existing research findings into practice. Education with effective, culturally sensitive, integrated, audience-tailored methods and materials is one necessary component for improving routine and universal medical practice in this area.