Guinness has always insisted that stout is "good for you" but visitors to the Accident & Emergency Department of St Vincent's Hospital in Dublin yesterday were surprised to see some of their fellow patients treated to a liberal helping of whiskey in an effort to cure their ills.
Patients reported that a group of building workers who had accidentally ingested poison with their tea during a break at work were served by nurses with what appeared to be whiskey.
The beverage was poured from a bottle with a Powers label on the front. One man who refused the offer because he doesn't drink alcohol was told there it was the best antidote, according to other patients who attended the unit yesterday.
A spokeswoman for the hospital was reluctant to give details of the incident last night but confirmed the casualty unit had treated some people who had been poisoned by ethylene glycol - the active ingredient found in commercial antifreeze for cars. The chemical is poisonous.
The standard treatment for ethylene glycol toxicosis is the administration of ethanol, she said.
Ethanol is the common ingredient in drinking alcohol and it interferes with the metabolism of ethylene glycol.
Pets are frequently poisoned by ethylene glycol when their masters change their radiator fluid as it has a sweet taste.
Yesterday afternoon was the only time she had known this treatment to be have been used at the casualty department. The patients were discharged after their treatment, she added.
