Motivational interviewing to patients with comorbid substance use admitted to an acute psychiatric department

Background/Objectives: Alcohol or other drug-related problems are common among patients admitted to acute psychiatric departments. The patients with comorbid substance use have a short length of stay in hospital and the time available for treatment interventions before discharge is short. Motivational Interviewing (MI) is a client-centred and directive style of counselling that elicits behavioural change by helping people to explore and resolve their ambivalence. Brief interventions with MI have shown substantial reduction in alcohol and drug use in other patient populations. The objective of the study was in a…