Reporting alcohol-impaired drivers: results from a national survey of emergency physicians.

STUDY OBJECTIVE

The purpose of this exploratory study was to learn of physicians' opinions on mandatory reporting of alcohol-impaired drivers they encounter in the course of their clinical work to the police or authorities from the Division of Motor Vehicles.

DESIGN AND PARTICIPANTS

Two thousand four hundred sixty-four physicians randomly selected from the American College of Emergency Physicians were sent an anonymous, one-time only, self-administered questionnaire seeking demographic information and assessing attitudes toward mandatory reporting and alcohol treatment.

MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS

One thousand fifty-five physicians returned the survey. Seventy-eight percent of respondents agreed with mandatory reporting. More than half expressed strong agreement. Through canonical discriminant analysis we are able to identify the complex factors influencing attitude toward mandatory reporting.

CONCLUSION

Although our preliminary results must be interpreted with caution, it appears that with the appropriate legal safeguards, physicians are supportive of mandatory reporting of the alcohol-impaired driver encountered in the course of clinical work.