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Tag: RSA Update

  • RSA Update: Reducing Drink Driving

    It seems like almost every day someone somewhere in Oz is caught for drink driving despite efforts to educate the public about the dangers of getting behind the wheel after consuming alcohol.

    The most recent incident reported by www.News.com.au was of a man who was detected driving with a blood alcohol level, 4 times over the legal limit.

    Drink driving is dangerous for so many reasons, one of them being because it makes obeying the rules of the road and rational thinking difficult. The man involved was not only over the limit but was also speeding.

    Before drink driving, drivers should consider the consequences and penalties that drink driving can cause. For example your licence can be suspended which in itself is more than just inconvenient, especially for those whose livelihood is somehow dependent upon being able to drive.

    Drivers be aware of the consequences of drink driving which can be much greater than the consequences of abstaining from drinking if you have to drive or calling a taxi. In addition to having his vehicle impounded for 28 days the man also had his licence confiscated for 12 months. However this is still luckier than he could have been, he could have been killed or caused the death of other innocent road users had a crash occurred.

    Below is the post from News.com.au detailing the incident:

    A MAN’S car has been impounded after he was allegedly caught driving with a blood alcohol reading more than four times the legal limit yesterday on The Parade at Magill.

    About 4.25pm, police conducting laser duties on The Parade allegedly detected a silver Nissan four-wheel-drive vehicle traveling at 62 km/h in a 50 km/h zone.

    After submitting to a breath test, the driver recorded a reading of 0.207.

    He was issued a 12-month instant loss of licence notice and had his car impounded for 28 days.

    The 67-year-old man from Magill was reported for exceeding the prescribed concentration of alcohol, and exceeding the speed limit.

    He will appear in court at a later date.

    Source: http://www.news.com.au/breaking-news/driver-blew-four-times-alcohol-limit/story-e6frfkp9-1226624145261

    Alcohol Servers: What you can Do to Reduce Drink Driving

    Alcohol servers should learn what a standard drink constitutes and know more or less the alcoholic content of drinks you serve so that you are able to advise patrons accordingly and assist them in remaining sober. Learn what a standard drink is and stick to the government’s recommended daily standard drink. This will allow you to remain within the limits of the law when serving patrons or drinking yourself. Advise your customers not to drink and drive and encourage them to call a taxi or friend for a lift home. Have a phone that patrons can use if they need to call for transport home.

     

  • RSA Update: Quick Tips for Bartenders on Reducing Alcohol Related Harm

    Bartenders and serving staff of licenced venues have a role to play in reducing alcohol induced violence and harm. This is one of the reasons why authorities made Responsible Service of Alcohol training mandatory for all workers in the alcohol sales and service industry.

    There is no doubt that alcohol fuelled harm in Oz especially in entertainment districts has gotten out of hand, but there are some practical tips that bartenders and other workers in licenced venues can adopt to prevent contributing to alcohol fuelled harm.

    • Do not serve alcohol to minors. They are not responsible enough or physically developed enough to handle their liquor. They also have less self-control and restraint and therefore are more likely to abuse alcohol and binge drink, resulting in harm to themselves and possibly others.
    • Do not serve alcohol to anyone who you suspect is or is displaying signs that they may be unduly intoxicated. This is one of the biggest problems contributing to alcohol problems in Oz at the moment.
    • Do not serve the same person too many drinks, even if they do not display signs of physical intoxication. Keep track of how many drinks you serve each person.
    • Be aware of any new restrictions that may have been implemented in your district and adhere to them. For example Byrons Bay has recently introduced a number of measures to combat alcohol fuelled violence in the district such as a 1.30am lockout, refusal of entry to any person seen drinking within 50 metres of a venue and restrictions on takeaway sales after a set time. Learn the new rules and stick to them.

     

  • RSA Update: Does Liquor Outlet Density Affect Residents Health?

    A question that often faces the community and authorities in charge of issuing liquor licences is whether or not the density of liquor outlets and licenced venues in a neighbourhood has an effect on the health of people in that neighbourhood.

    Many believe that the more licenced venues and outlets an area has, the more difficult it is to enforce responsible service of alcohol laws.

    Now new research by the University of Western Australia has determined that people with more liquor outlets in their neighbourhood do in fact have higher levels of harmful/ binge drinking and also suffer from worse mental health that those who live a further distance away from outlets.

    The study funded by Healthway was published in a prestigious online US journal called PLOS One and is important because most research on alcohol outlet density in the past has focused only on violence, crime, safety and vehicle crashes. The findings of the research are particularly significant because it supports the plan by the WA Health Department to establish a healthier WA,part of the plan is to limit the density of alcohol outlets.

    The research found that the rate of alcohol consumption and harmful alcohol consumption in particular increased as the number of alcohol outlets in the neighbourhood also increased. This also has an effect on the mental health of the neighbourhood as well because the study shows that more people had to be treated for anxiety, depression and stress in areas that were more densely filled with liquor outlets.

    What the research proves is that authorities concerns about alcohol outlet density is valid and limiting the number of outlets in a particular area is warranted.

    Read the post below which elaborates on the research from www.news.uwa.edu.au:

    Co-author Associate Professor Lisa Wood, Deputy Director of UWA’s Centre for the Built Environment and Health, said the study reinforced the WA Health Department’s five-year plan for a healthier WA.

    “One of the suggestions in the five-year plan is limiting the density of alcohol outlets,” she said.

    “We found that the average number of standard drinks per day and the rate of harmful alcohol consumption increased for each additional alcohol outlet in a neighbourhood.”

    The researchers also found that the likelihood of being treated in hospital for anxiety, stress or depression increased as the number of alcohol outlets within walking distance (1600m) of home increased.

    “While the association between alcohol outlet density and injury, crime and violence are well documented, this is one of the first studies internationally to specifically look at how this might impact on mental health disorders,” Associate Professor Wood said. 

    The study was based on Department of Health survey data from nearly 7000 Perth-based adults, and used geographical mapping to link this to the location of all licensed alcohol outlets in Perth.

    “Our findings underscore the importance of limiting both the number of liquor store licences and the geographic density of outlets as a way to improve mental health and reduce other alcohol-related harm,” Associate Professor Wood said.

    Source: http://www.news.uwa.edu.au/201301235382/research/health-issues-linked-nearby-liquor-outlets

     

  • RSA Update: Beware of Binge Drinking

    Responsible Servers know that serving alcohol to an already intoxicated person is a recipe for disaster however not many understand the dangers that binge drinking can have on a person, both immediate and long term.

    One night of binge drinking has the potential to change a person’s life for ever so drinkers need to be aware of the dangers beforehand in order to overcome them. The problem of drinking too much on a single occasion not only increases the person’s risk of contracting alcohol relating sickness but can also result in a number of serious consequences for the person and possibly those around them.

    It is recommended by experts that adults drink no more than 4 standard drinks in any single occasion however most people rarely stop at 4. Alcohol is not the enemy, but people need to consume it responsibly.

    Drinkers that indulge in binge drinking can not only develop negative side effects on their health but can cause injury to others. Some of the health effects that binge drinkers can expect to experience are hangovers, nausea, vomiting, memory loss, physical injury to yourself or others, alcohol poisoning. Young people and teenagers are particularly at risk of these side effects if they binge drink because alcohol lowers their inhibitions resulting in generally riskier behaviour. Some have even been known to indulge in criminal activities while drunk which they ordinarily would never involve themselves in.