| Course | HEA-3060 Men's Health |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 5 |
| Paper type | Evidence paper: alcohol screening and brief intervention for men |
| Length | About 1,011 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | B.S. in Health Studies |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for HEA 3060 Module 5
Ten Beers on a Saturday: Screening and Brief Advice for an Electrician in Bayonne
Student Name
B.S. in Health Studies, Thomas Edison State University
HEA-3060: Men's Health
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
Ten Beers on a Saturday: Screening and Brief Advice for an Electrician in Bayonne
Introduction
Men drink more than women on average, are more likely to binge and have higher rates of alcohol-related injury, liver disease and death. Most men who drink heavily do not have severe alcohol dependence, and many consider their drinking normal. For these men, brief advice from a clinician can make a difference. This paper explains how heavy drinking can be identified, what the evidence says about brief intervention and how both apply to one man.
The Man
Danny is invented for this paper. He is 36, a union electrician in Bayonne, married with two young children. During the week he has a beer or two after work. On Saturdays he watches games with friends and has about ten beers, sometimes more. He has never missed work because of drinking, but last summer he fell off a ladder at a family barbecue and broke his wrist. He came to his doctor for a physical required by his union.
How Much Is Too Much
In the United States, a standard drink contains about 14 grams of alcohol, roughly one 12-ounce beer. Federal guidance describes heavy drinking for men as more than four drinks on any day or more than fourteen in a week. Danny's Saturday alone exceeds the daily limit by more than double, and his weekly total is above twenty drinks.
Finding Unhealthy Drinking
Saunders et al. (1993) developed the AUDIT, short for Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, through a World Health Organization project in six countries. Its ten questions cover how often and how much a person drinks, how often he has six or more drinks on one occasion, signs of dependence, for example failing to stop once started, plus harms like injury or concern from others. Scores of 8 or more suggest hazardous or harmful drinking. The tool was designed for primary care, where most heavy drinkers are seen for other reasons, and it works across cultures. A shorter version uses only the first three questions.
The Recommendation
For adults 18 and older in primary care, the Task Force recommended screening for unhealthy alcohol use, followed by short behavioral counseling for anyone found drinking at risky or hazardous levels, a grade B recommendation (US Preventive Services Task Force, 2018). It identified the AUDIT, its short form and a single question about heavy drinking days as accurate tools. Effective counseling ranged from one brief session to several, often with follow-up.
Does Brief Advice Work
Kaner et al. (2018) reviewed 69 randomized trials of brief interventions in primary care with more than 33,000 participants. A year on, people given a brief intervention were drinking roughly 20 grams less alcohol a week than those who received little or no intervention, roughly a drink and a half less each week. The evidence was of moderate quality and clearer for men than for women. Longer interventions did not reliably add benefit over shorter ones.
| Source | Key point | Meaning for Danny |
|---|---|---|
| Saunders et al. (1993) | The AUDIT identifies hazardous drinking in primary care | His answers would score well above 8 |
| US Preventive Services Task Force (2018) | Screen adults; counsel those with risky drinking | His physical is the right moment |
| Kaner et al. (2018) | Brief interventions reduce drinking, clearest in men | A short conversation could help |
Danny's Visit
Danny completed the AUDIT on a tablet in the waiting room. His frequency, quantity and binge answers, together with his injury at the barbecue, gave a score of 14. His clinician did not label him an alcoholic. Instead, she showed him how his weekly total compared with men his age, asked what he liked about drinking and what worried him and connected the broken wrist to the drinking without lecturing. She asked what he might be willing to change. Danny said he did not want to be the dad who fell off a ladder in front of his kids again, and he agreed to try a limit of four beers on game days and to alternate with water. She scheduled a follow-up call in a month.
Masculinity and Drinking Culture
Danny's Saturday reflects a culture in which heavy drinking with friends is a normal part of being one of the guys, and in which being able to hold one's liquor is admired. Trades like his often have strong drinking cultures. Brief advice that respects his choices and avoids shaming fits the pattern of help seeking that responds to a sense of control. Framing the change around his role as a father and his safety at work used values he already holds.
Work and Family
Alcohol is a safety issue for electricians, who work at heights and with live current. His union offers a member assistance program that provides confidential counseling. His wife can support the change, and their children's activities give him reasons to keep Saturdays lighter.
Following Up
A single conversation is a start, not an end. Danny's follow-up call gave him a chance to report what happened. He had kept to five beers on one Saturday and more on another. His clinician praised the progress, asked what made the harder day different and helped him plan for the next game. The Task Force noted that effective counseling often included more than one contact. If Danny's drinking had not changed or had shown signs of dependence, the next step would have been referral to specialized treatment.
Limits
Brief interventions reduce drinking modestly and are not treatment for severe alcohol use disorder, which needs more intensive care. Trials vary in what they call a brief intervention. Danny is invented, and his clinician's approach is one example among several.
Conclusion
Danny's ten beers on a Saturday seemed ordinary to him. The AUDIT identified his drinking as hazardous, the Task Force recommends that clinicians find and counsel men like him and Kaner and colleagues show that a short conversation can reduce drinking. Screening at a routine physical, advice that respects his control and reasons drawn from his own life gave him a practical place to start.
References
Kaner, E. F. S., Beyer, F. R., Muirhead, C., Campbell, F., Pienaar, E. D., Bertholet, N., Daeppen, J. B., Saunders, J. B., & Burnand, B. (2018). Effectiveness of brief alcohol interventions in primary care populations. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, (2), Article CD004148. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD004148.pub4
Saunders, J. B., Aasland, O. G., Babor, T. F., de la Fuente, J. R., & Grant, M. (1993). Development of the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT): WHO collaborative project on early detection of persons with harmful alcohol consumption-II. Addiction, 88(6), 791-804. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1360-0443.1993.tb02093.x
US Preventive Services Task Force. (2018). Screening and behavioral counseling interventions to reduce unhealthy alcohol use in adolescents and adults: US Preventive Services Task Force recommendation statement. JAMA, 320(18), 1899-1909. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2018.16789
What the HEA 3060 Module 5 instructions ask for
Factors that influence men's health outcomes are at the heart of TESU's HEA-3060 description, and since the syllabus is not public, module five takes the form of an evidence paper on men's drinking, screening and brief advice. Your paper should define heavy drinking with standard measures, describe a validated screening tool, state the current recommendation, report evidence on brief interventions with its size and quality and apply all of it to one man with attention to culture, work and family. Some sections focus on opioids or on young men's binge drinking instead. Ask whether your mentor wants an AUDIT score worked out for the case. Include follow-up in your plan, since the Task Force found effective counseling often involved more than one contact.
Inside the HEA 3060 Module 5 example
An invented 36-year-old Bayonne electrician who has ten beers on Saturdays and broke his wrist at a barbecue comes for a union physical. Standard drinks and heavy drinking limits, the AUDIT, the 2018 Task Force recommendation and Kaner and colleagues' Cochrane review are explained, then traced through the visit in a table. His AUDIT score of 14, a brief conversation that draws on his role as a father, drinking culture in the trades, his union's assistance program, limits and a conclusion follow. Treatment of the follow-up call, with mixed progress, praise and planning for the next game, and a note on referral if dependence appears, comes before the limits. Throughout, annotations show how the conversation uses his own reasons.
HEA 3060 Module 5 rubric: what earns full marks
Alcohol papers earn credit for standard definitions of drinks and heavy drinking, a correct account of the screening tool with its cut-off, the current recommendation with its grade, brief intervention evidence reported with its modest size and moderate quality, a visit that shows a respectful conversation and attention to culture and safety at work. Explaining the effect in drinks per week shows good health communication. Noting that brief advice does not treat severe dependence shows careful scope. Cochrane reviews should give the review number as the article number. Describing follow-up and the point at which referral to specialized treatment is needed shows an understanding of brief intervention as part of a pathway, not a single act.
Common HEA 3060 Module 5 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Alcohol papers often call any heavy drinker an alcoholic; separate hazardous drinking from dependence. Another frequent gap is overstating what brief advice achieves. Define a standard drink. Describe the screening tool and its scoring. Report the effect size plainly. Show the man's own reasons for change. Mention work safety. Name the limits. Send your case and brief for a free first draft. Plan follow-up. Say when referral to treatment is needed. Record progress honestly, including setbacks. Work out the case's AUDIT score if asked. Describe a respectful, nonjudgmental conversation. Mention union or employee assistance programs. Show what happens if drinking does not change after follow-up.
Write yours, or have the desk draft it
This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Thomas Edison State University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
More HEA 3060 and B.S. in Health Studies sample papers
- HEA 3060 Module 1: Masculinity and Help-Seeking Paper: Why Men See Doctors Less Often
- HEA 3060 Module 2: Prostate Cancer Screening Paper: The PSA Decision for Men 55 to 69
- HEA 3060 Module 3: Men's Depression and Suicide Paper: How Distress Is Missed and What Prevents Deaths
- HEA 3060 Module 4: Workplace Heart Health Paper: A Blood Pressure Program for Warehouse Staff
- HEA 3060 Module 6: Fathers' Health Paper: Paternal Depression, Involvement and Paternity Leave
- SOS 3700 Module 3: Written Assignment: Loper Bright and Health Agencies
- HEA 3050 Module 5: Perinatal Depression Paper: Prevalence, Screening and Counseling to Prevent It
- SOS 3200 Module 1: Stressors and Appraisal Paper: Life Events, Daily Hassles and Perceived Stress
- HEA 3071 Module 4: Heart Failure Case Study: Neurohormones, Remodeling and the Drugs That Reverse Them
HEA 3060 Module 5 questions, answered
Where can I find a free HEA 3060 Module 5 sample paper?
The alcohol screening paper about an invented Bayonne electrician, from the AUDIT to brief advice, is posted here in full.
What is the AUDIT?
A WHO questionnaire of ten items; a total of 8 or higher points to hazardous or harmful use.
How much drinking is heavy for men?
More than four drinks on any day or more than fourteen in a week, by U.S. federal guidance.
Do brief alcohol interventions work?
Yes, modestly; a Cochrane review found about 20 grams less alcohol per week a year later, with clearer evidence in men.
What does the Task Force recommend about alcohol?
Screening adults in primary care and brief behavioral counseling for those who drink in risky ways.