Simple answer make those who need medical attention due to too much alcohol drugs or whatever pay either at the point of being seen or by sending them a bill afterwards.
I think the police should also bring this in: Cages in the car park of the local nick. Most offences are too petty to take to court so a fine and not let out until midday the next day so they have to explain their absence to partner, family or work.
Hmmm... I think for repeated offences, then yes. But for one off binges, no. I don't like the idea of trying to ruin someone's life, just because they had a piss up one evening.
If the repeat drunkards were let out at midday and were faced with a bill too, it might make them think about their actions, especially if it resulted in a relationship breakdown and/or losing a job.
I'm very liberal, up until the point I'm not.
Is this another Americanism? , all together now sing the Pogues and Kirsty MacColl...........
This is long overdue, but considering those getting plastered on Friday and Saturday nights cost the NHS millions every year, is £300k enough to solve this problem?
No, money won't solve it. What will solve it is if the drunks aren't mollycoddled by the NHS, and are left to their own devices unto sobriety. For example, someone tumbles out of a pub? If that individual is just ignored, finds himself in the gutter, it rains all night, and he has to literally crawl home in it, you can bet on one thing - he'll/she'll never do it again??
Then again, the NHS has got it wrong: some years ago, the local rag reported that a paramedic had been seriously assaulted by a weekend binge drinker. It emerged that the paramedic kept trying to help the drunk into the ambulance, but time and again he made it clear he didn't want to get in nor wanted any attention from her at all. But get this - instead of saying 'Okay, your choice, we'll attend to somebody else.' she (the paramedic) still persisted until? Yep, you've guessed it - he punched her in the face.
No, money won't solve it. What will solve it is if the drunks aren't mollycoddled by the NHS, and are left to their own devices unto sobriety. For example, someone tumbles out of a pub? If that individual is just ignored, finds himself in the gutter, it rains all night, and he has to literally crawl home in it, you can bet on one thing - he'll/she'll never do it again??
This was my view for a long time too, until scum neighbours moved in next to me and were alcohoics and as I came to learn, they were in effect addicted to booze.
Then again, the NHS has got it wrong: some years ago, the local rag reported that a paramedic had been seriously assaulted by a weekend binge drinker. It emerged that the paramedic kept trying to help the drunk into the ambulance, but time and again he made it clear he didn't want to get in nor wanted any attention from her at all. But get this - instead of saying 'Okay, your choice, we'll attend to somebody else.' she (the paramedic) still persisted until? Yep, you've guessed it - he punched her in the face.
This is the whole point of drunk tanks. Their put into them, left to their own devices, but medical help is there in case of serious problems.
This was my view for a long time too, until scum neighbours moved in next to me and were alcohoics and as I came to learn, they were in effect addicted to booze.
This is the whole point of drunk tanks. Their put into them, left to their own devices, but medical help is there in case of serious problems.
What exactly is a 'drunk tank'? A vehicle, or a dedicated room somewhere in the town?
Either. They could stick them in a bus, or seal off a corner of a shopping centre, or have a dedicated room for them.
Nah, I'll go with my idea, then they won't need any of those - at the taxpayers' expense? Drastic situations call for drastic solutions.
Either. They could stick them in a bus, or seal off a corner of a shopping centre, or have a dedicated room for them.
What else can you do with them, the ambulance service and A&E attend everybody no matter what
The TV fly on the wall documentaries show the difficulties they face, and off topic the endless calls from those with mental health problems
I'm not suggesting drunks who turn up at A&E (or are swept off the pavement into an ambulance and delivered to an A&E ) should be left to die in the reception hall. But I'm all in favour of them experiencing, for at least 12 or 24 hours, a high degree of uncomfortable neglect in a locked room, amidst their own vomit, with fellow drunks (of one or other or both sexes), if necessary, cuffed or straitjacketed if there signs of violent intent. A row of toilet bowls, sinks, paper towels, sick bags and bread and water dispensers would complete the luxurious experience.
I'm not suggesting drunks who turn up at A&E (or are swept off the pavement into an ambulance and delivered to an A&E ) should be left to die in the reception hall. But I'm all in favour of them experiencing, for at least 12 or 24 hours, a high degree of uncomfortable neglect in a locked room, amidst their own vomit, with fellow drunks (of one or other or both sexes), if necessary, cuffed or straitjacketed if there signs of violent intent. A row of toilet bowls, sinks, paper towels, sick bags and bread and water dispensers would complete the luxurious experience.
Have you seen the state of our cities, Friday and Saturday night?
You would need an awful lot of accommodation to house/secure them all
I have a much simpler solution, whack the price of booze up so that they cannot afford to get so inebriated
But they punishes the poor who don't abuse alcohol, so I don't favour that at all.
I'm not suggesting drunks who turn up at A&E (or are swept off the pavement into an ambulance and delivered to an A&E ) should be left to die in the reception hall. But I'm all in favour of them experiencing, for at least 12 or 24 hours, a high degree of uncomfortable neglect in a locked room, amidst their own vomit, with fellow drunks (of one or other or both sexes), if necessary, cuffed or straitjacketed if there signs of violent intent. A row of toilet bowls, sinks, paper towels, sick bags and bread and water dispensers would complete the luxurious experience.
Yes I agree, wit the caveat that a nurse is on hand to deal with an emergency. They could choke on their own sick.
Yes I agree, wit the caveat that a nurse is on hand to deal with an emergency. They could choke on their own sick.
You're just too soft hearted!
Sort of, but I've learnt there's all kinds of different people and sometimes people just get stuck in a rut, or as in this case, get addicted to booze.
I was joking
What else can you do with them, the ambulance service and A&E attend everybody no matter what
The TV fly on the wall documentaries show the difficulties they face, and off topic the endless calls from those with mental health problems
'There are none who do so much harm as those obsessed with doing good.'
You're just too soft hearted!
But they punishes the poor who don't abuse alcohol, so I don't favour that at all.
Yes I agree, wit the caveat that a nurse is on hand to deal with an emergency. They could choke on their own sick.
So whose fault would that be? Try to explain your rationale to someone who has all the signs of an impending heart attack, or a suspected aortic aneurysm, but the ambulance and crew are too busy mollycoddling a regular weekend binge drinker in case he might choke on his own sick? And I'll go further - try to imagine that the person who might be having one of the above life-threatening episodes but can't get to the hospital might be you or someone you know? I can't believe I'm having to explain that.
I agree cerberus, but at the moment A&Es (or ED's as they seem to be called now) are filled with drunks on a Friday and Saturday night. And having been in a A&E on a weekend night with a sick elderly parent, I can say the experience is about as unpleasant as it gets. So, I'm in favour of creating a place, preferably close to all the pubs in town centres, where the drunks can be placed with nurses in attendance. Far cheaper than them coming into hospital and causing mayhem.
I was joking
And I was replying.
I agree cerberus, but at the moment A&Es (or ED's as they seem to be called now) are filled with drunks on a Friday and Saturday night. And having been in a A&E on a weekend night with a sick elderly parent, I can say the experience is about as unpleasant as it gets. So, I'm in favour of creating a place, preferably close to all the pubs in town centres, where the drunks can be placed with nurses in attendance. Far cheaper than them coming into hospital and causing mayhem.
And I was replying.
The trouble with that idea though is some of those nurses will be duffed up, and have to go to A&E themselves? It would be absolute chaos - as if it isn't already?
As to 'causing mayhem in A&E' though, picture this: between 1- 2am (I think he said it was a Friday night) my brother-in-law and my sister, who had been triaged on an urgent basis because a) she was on chemotherapy, and b) was in pain, were waiting for a slot. Suddenly there was a lot of noise coming from behind one of the doors into the waiting room, followed by one of them being thrown open, and some punk laughing his drunken** head off was being chased by hospital security staff, and the scum punk was running in and out of the chairs between waiting patients, almost climbing over them as the security were trying to catch him. Our A&E is being abused like this nationwide almost every night of the week, but worse at weekends. We see the chaos because it's tangible; what we don't see is the effect on severely worried and distressed patients: they must be worried otherwise they wouldn't be there? I honestly do not understand your apparent concern for the scum - after all they don't have to get out of their minds every weekend.
** He surmised the troublemaker was probably on drugs, because if it was alcohol he wouldn't have been so hyper.
In the drunk tank, you have police to protect the nurses.
While Burglar Bill is having a field day . . . or night, safe in the knowledge the plod are otherwise occupied! I think we'd better drop this, don't you?
In the drunk tank, you have police to protect the nurses.
So why the hard pressed police have to guard those who treat self inflicted problems they are unable to deal with crime elsewhere
The police spend most of their weekends dealing with drunks, so having the worst ones contained with police in attendance, makes perfect sense to me.
Burglar Bill, as crime stats show, doesn't do burglars on weekend nights. At this time of year, you're mostly likely to get burgled between the time of 3pm to 4pm on a weekday.
I still think we'd better drop it?
ps I had an awful feeling that I wrote 'Bugler Bill' 
I've already got one word confused with another this morning - where appropriate, for 'salient' read 'sentient'?? 
The point is, the police are in town centres dealing with the drunks already, so better for them to be contained in one place. It wouldn't be using additional resources and also the police are in attendance in most hospitals too on weekend nights dealing with the drunks, so drunk tanks would ultimately be a cheaper option all round.
The programmes I've seen show the police rushing to incidents involving drunks from wherever they are on patrol, and hospitals employ security guards
I still say that if they're left to their own devices, and undergo the scenario I mentioned . . . spend half the night in pouring rain, crawl home in the morning, and have a hangover for the rest of the day, they'll never, never do it again - I guarantee it. All you lot are doing is bloody-well encouraging them. 
