Introduction
Alcohol use can increase our risk of suffering minor and significant mishaps, including slips and falls, drowning, poisoning, and other unintended injuries. In reality, accidental damage accounts for slightly under one-third (29%) of all alcohol-related fatalities (World Health Organization). Alcohol is a depressive; it slows the brain and impacts how the body reacts. Alcohol also slows inhibition-related brain activity, making it less likely that any warning signs that could activate if a person were sober would be effective. Accidents are more likely to occur after one very intense drinking session that leaves a person intoxicated and impaired, such as when someone is drunk and unable to respond or perform as they would while sober. This essay, therefore, discusses who should be held accountable for the accidents resulting from overconsumption of alcohol by a customer served at a club, bar, or restaurant.
Parties Involved
Numerous institutions, including government agencies, for-profit organizations, and NGOs, are devoted to improving public knowledge of alcoholism and its effects. Each one has contributed significantly to the development and comprehension of disorders related to alcohol use, such as alcohol addiction, as a medical disorder, and assisted in the identification of the various therapies and drugs currently available for use in the treatment of alcohol-dependent people. The National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) is a well-regarded resource for alcohol research. The NIAAA, one of the 27 institutions that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in the U.S., has been financing and carrying out studies on the effects of alcohol on health and well-being for over 40 years (Solomon). In actuality, the group contributes the most funds to alcohol research worldwide. Its primary objectives include epidemiological and genetic study emphasizing the treatment, prevention, and understanding of addiction, as well as disseminating the findings of global alcohol research to the general public, decision-makers, and other interested parties.
Additionally, The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, Inc. (NCADD) is a group that supports people who are attempting to recover from alcoholism or another drug misuse issue. In addition to connecting individuals in need to local options where they may receive the in-person treatment required to beat alcoholism and addiction, NCADD provides those in need with access to the knowledge they need. They operate under the tenet that they can heal all alcoholics and that alcohol recovery programs can help alcoholics get sober and have whole happy lives.
Scale and Scope of the Issue
Alcohol is a psychoactive drug with addictive qualities that has been used for ages in many cultures. Alcohol abuse has severe social and economic repercussions and a high illness burden. Alcohol abuse can hurt not just oneself but also friends, family, coworkers, and strangers. More than 200 illnesses, injuries, and other health issues are caused by alcohol use (Ishmael et al. 18). Alcohol consumption is linked to an increased risk of non-communicable severe illnesses such as liver cirrhosis, several malignancies, cardiovascular diseases as well as mental and behavioral disorders, and alcohol dependency. Unintentional and intentional injuries, such as those caused by car accidents, acts of violence, and suicide, account for a sizable amount of the disease burden linked to alcohol intake. Younger age groups are likely to experience fatal alcohol-related injuries. There is evidence linking problematic drinking to the occurrence or consequences of infectious illnesses, including HIV/AIDS and T.B. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), and pre-term birth issues can arise from a pregnant woman drinking alcohol.
Relevant Issues
While the entertainment business is seeing an explosion of ground-breaking innovation, it is crucial that the sector not lose sight of the risks connected with what is, after all, an intoxicating substance. It is presently unlawful in several nations, including the U.K., the U.S., and Australia, to sell alcohol to intoxicated and, conversely, to purchase an alcoholic beverage for someone you know to be intoxicated (Hamilton et al. 754). Numerous high-profile tragedies involving the alleged over-serving of alcohol have made headlines recently, some of which have had disastrous outcomes. According to media reports, bartenders are frequently held accountable for these intoxications, for which the restaurant may face heavy penalties and revoke its operating license.
In the US, Alcohol-related regulations are not federal; they are local and differ significantly between areas. A business is at risk if it does not control the commercial sale of alcohol since it exposes itself to more criminal and legal liabilities. The Dram Shop Act, for instance, is in force in 38 states (Hamilton et al. 760). The Dram Shop Act may enable third parties or others to seek compensation for losses brought on by claimed excessive alcohol service. In addition to Dram, certain states permit the prosecution of servers on criminal charges when it harms people or property. Failure to abide by your business’s relevant rules and regulations may incur penalties such as fines, imprisonment, license revocation, and negative publicity.
Tactics and Strategies
Partnerships and public health advocacy are required to reduce the accidents associated with alcohol intoxication. According to Witkiewitz et al., partnerships and international public health advocacy are required to increase the commitment and capacity of governments and other relevant parties at all levels to reduce the harmful use of alcohol globally. In most countries, the government uses enhanced capacity and competence to develop, uphold, and implement the required policy and legal frameworks. By creating long-term processes and supplying the essential technical tools and normative direction for efficient technical support and capacity-building, it assures support for national action.
Monitoring changes in alcohol use, alcohol-related damage, and social reactions, analyzing this data, and allowing timely distribution are essential areas for worldwide action. The amount of information that is currently known about the extent of harmful alcohol use, the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of preventive and treatment interventions, information on the epidemiology and the effects on economic and social development, and the spread of infectious diseases in developing and low- and middle-income countries, should all be systematically expanded and consolidated at the global level.
Consequently, the general level of hazardous alcohol consumption can be decreased by public health methods that aim to control the commercial or public supply of alcohol through laws, rules, and programs. Such tactics offer crucial defenses against vulnerable and high-risk groups’ simple access to alcohol. Alcohol availability on the market and in the general population can reciprocally affect each other, affecting social and cultural norms that support hazardous alcohol consumption (Maani & Petticrew 93). The degree of control over alcohol supply will be determined by local conditions, including cultural, social, and economic factors, as well as by currently in force international responsibilities.
Outside Influences
The outside factors that influence vulnerability to alcohol intoxication that might result in accidents include genetics, gender, lifestyle and diet, exposure to medications and toxins in the environment, and co-morbidities. Variations influence the individual’s reaction to alcohol consumption and illness consequences in the genes that encode the metabolic pathways for triglycerides or alcohol, as well as a variety of additional genes that may be implicated in the pathogenesis or protection against alcohol-induced toxicity (Maani & Petticrew 96). Additionally, alcohol misuse-related morbidity and mortality are also influenced by dietary variables, including excessive drinking habits, fat intake, lifestyle choices like drug abuse, smoking, and environmental factors
Ethical Viewpoint
Justice as a concept presupposes fairness and equality. It implies that the law will treat all parties fairly and give them a fair share of judgment if an accident results from excessive alcohol consumption. Both an individual level and a more general social level are affected by this idea.
Consequently, many nations have passed laws allowing for prosecution and civil actions against commercial enterprises that offer alcohol to people who are inebriated or children to guarantee that bars, clubs, and restaurants are treated fairly. Businesses may be particularly susceptible to the legal repercussions of providing excessive customer service. While bartenders can be especially helpful in reducing the harm that an intoxicated individual may inflict by cutting them, they might also be held accountable for overserving and face legal and civil penalties.
The Success of the Resolution
From the Resolution, if a bartender keeps bringing drinks to a patron who is blatantly intoxicated to the point where they might endanger themselves or others, the establishment may be held accountable for overserving. A bartender should decide to cease supplying beverages to a patron if, for instance, they are speaking slurred, seeming bewildered, or having problems getting up and moving around. If the bartender keeps serving that individual alcohol, they deliberately raise the risk of an accident, particularly if the customer intends to drive home from the bar.
Furthermore, if one thinks the bar staff should be held accountable for an accident resulting from overserving a customer, it might be challenging to establish who was to blame. Bartenders may claim that they only gave a couple of drinks but that the customer had already been drinking, was hungry, or had a low alcohol tolerance. The bar will probably not be held responsible for any accidents or injuries caused by a patron’s intoxication if the personnel can show that they could not have been expected to know that person was intoxicated.
Proposed Plan
The initiatives listed below involve plans to prevent alcohol problems, restrict access to alcohol, increase alcohol taxation, and forbid serving alcohol to intoxicated customers. First, it makes sense to assume that restricting alcohol availability would lead to less drinking, leading to fewer alcohol-related issues. Despite lifting Prohibition, states still have the authority to control how alcohol is sold. Second, regulation of the sale and service of alcohol by laws and policies. These policies include selling alcohol and educating alcohol servers, usually created by bar and restaurant owners.
In conclusion, accidents that occur outside drinking establishments must be the responsibility of the involved party. It is by virtue that individuals are allowed to drink in a bar or any alcohol outlet. The individual is responsible for accidents or destruction after leaving the drinking place. Bartenders and other bar personnel are not to be held accountable for anything outside the drinking place. Several issues related to negotiations surrounding alcohol abuse should be approached with appropriate strategies that ensure fairness and justice to satisfy all parties involved.
Works Cited
Hamilton, K., Keech, J. J., Peden, A. E., & Hagger, M. S. (2018). Alcohol use, aquatic injury, and unintentional drowning: A systematic literature review. Drug and Alcohol Review, 37(6), 752–773. Web.
Ishmael, Chad R., et al. “An Early Look at Operative Orthopaedic Injuries Associated With Electric Scooter Accidents.” Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, vol. 102, no. 5, Ovid Technologies (Wolters Kluwer Health), 2019, p. e18. Web.
Maani Hessari, N., and M. Petticrew. “What does the alcohol industry mean by ‘Responsible drinking’? A comparative analysis.” Journal of Public Health 40.1 (2018): 90-97. Web.
Solomon, Carl. “Is a Restaurant or Bar Responsible for Its Drunk Customers?” Solomon Law Group, 2018, Web.
Witkiewitz, K., R. Z. Litten, and L. Leggio. “Advances in the science and treatment of alcohol use disorder.” Science advances 5.9 (2019): eaax4043. Web.
World Health Organization. Global status report on alcohol and health 2018. World Health Organization, 2019.