Appendix A: Examples of State Problem Gambling Prevention Page 2

Appendixes

Appendix A: Examples of State Problem Gambling Prevention Page 2

Programs and Activities

Appendix B: Universal Awareness and Prevention Packages Page 6

Appendix C: Gambling Industry Responsible Gaming Resources Page 9

And Materials

Appendix D: Targeted Resources and Programs for Youth Page 14

Appendix E: Resources and Materials for Older Adults Page 30

Appendix F: Resources for Ethnic/Cultural Groups Page 32

Appendix A

Examples of State Problem Gambling Prevention Programs and Activities

Arizona

The Office of Problem Gambling (OPG) funds a statewide helpline operated by Bensinger, DuPont and Associates. The OPG promotes awareness of the helpline through TV, newspaper, billboard ads, brochures and posters. Between July 1, 2002 and June 30, 2003, the helpline received 400 calls from individuals seeking help for a gambling problem. The Office also supports public awareness activities that include presentations and information tables at community organizations (particularly senior organizations).

Connecticut

The Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services—Problem Gambling Services supports a problem gambling helpline operated by the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling. Helpline awareness is promoted through billboard ads, brochures and posters. Other public awareness activities include a speaker’s bureau, public relations activities, conferences and presentations. Prevention activities are provided through Regional Action Councils and include conferences, curriculum development, awareness building activities and pilot programs such as “Games” a school and community involvement program. Problem Gambling Services staff participate in the Partnership for Responsible Gambling along with the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling and the Connecticut Lottery. This group serves as a combined leadership resource for responsible gambling by offering information on guidelines for responsible gambling, warning signs of problem gambling and available services.

Iowa

The Iowa Department of Public Health; Division of Health Promotion, Prevention and Addictive Behaviors Gambling Treatment Program funds a problem gambling helpline operated by the Iowa State University Extension. The helpline is promoted through TV, newspaper, billboard and phone book ads. Between July 1, 2002 and June 30, 2003, the helpline received 4,895 calls. The Gambling Treatment Program provides public awareness through media advertising, education presentations for schools and civic groups and public relations activities. Prevention activities are conducted by 10 state funded treatment providers via activities within school systems, civic groups and other venues.

Louisiana

Through a collaborative effort with Massachusetts Council and Harvard University, Division on Addictions for the youth curriculum “Facing the Odds" was implemented. Louisiana committed the fiscal resourcesnot only to make it “teacher/classroom friendly” but to produce some "Kits" for the classroom which included a teacher'smanual.¼There is an excellent film piece on tape issued by the AGAin connectionwith Responsible GamingWeek some years ago in which a Louisiana math teacher illustrates the use of the curriculum in the classroom. While statewide use and distribution has not yet been accomplished, there are several schools where it is being used

Youth Gambling Prevention Websitesponsored and maintained by the state Office for Addictive Disorders. It can be accessed through www.laprobgam.orgor directly at www.thegamble.org. The site has interactive games, information and assistance.

Nebraska

The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Mental Health, Substance Abuse and Addiction Services Gamblers Assistance Program funds a problem gambling helpline operated by the Nebraska Council on Compulsive Gambling. The helpline is promoted through listing in the phone book and brochures and posters. Between January 2003 and December 2003, the helpline received 2,224 calls. The Council also provides for public awareness through public presentations. Other agencies (generally those with contracts to provide treatment services) are reimbursed for community outreach activities and awareness presentations. In collaboration with the Nebraska Council a statewide Problem Gambling Awareness Week conference is supported.

Oregon

The Oregon Department of Human Services, Problem Gambling Services has formulated a well-defined public health approach to both the prevention and treatment of problem gambling. Their Service Delivery Overview clearly presents their philosophical approach which incorporates prevention, harm reduction and multiple levels of treatment to include strategies that “minimize gambling’s negative impacts while recognizing the reality of gambling’s availability, cultural acceptance and economic appeal.”

Their prevention and outreach services include:

·  Public service announcements on radio, television, and newspapers and websites

·  Presentations to local government bodies and agencies, businesses, credit counseling programs, EAP’s criminal justice agencies and professionals, social service agencies, prevention and treatment professionals, mental health and AOD treatment clients, senior citizen groups, community groups, medical community, Native American community, Latino community, youth groups, schools

·  Materials including educational packets, educational materials for the business community, for youth, in Spanish, specifically for the African American community

·  Community based processes included community needs assessment, community forums, collaborations with Latino service providers, collaboration with AOD prevention partners

·  Outreach and problem gambling screening and identification efforts conducted in AOD/MH clients, Corrections/legal system clients, economically disadvantaged, family members of clients,

Appendix B

Universal Awareness and Prevention Packages

Community Information Session on Problem Gambling (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 1999). The Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Ontario developed a presentation package that allows service agencies offering treatment services for problem gambling to raise public awareness and increase knowledge among professionals who might encounter problem gamblers. The presentation package is enhanced by overhead transparencies and covers the following topics: background information on gambling in Ontario (definition, history, evolution, dimensions and types of gambling available), reasons why people gamble, types of gamblers, definition of problem gambling and its prevalence, similarities and differences between gambling and substance abuse, assessment tools available to clinicians, as well as signs and symptoms that help identify problem gambling.

The presentation package also covers several theoretical models that try to explain how a gambling problem can develop and offer intervention models accordingly. The presentation package pays special attention to cognitive distortions associated with gambling, which are demonstrated with the help of a video depicting a client uncovering such distortions while in session. Finally, the professionals offering the information session can modify the package and take the opportunity to present their own treatment services for problem gambling. The information session also includes an evaluation form that assesses the usefulness of the content, the level of satisfaction, and opportunity for further suggestions. More recently, two surveys were conducted in order to evaluate these public awareness efforts and to catalog comments made by those who used the presentation package. The feedback was very positive, and many suggestions were made that led to the development of the new resource package (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 2001).

Promoting Community Awareness of Problem Gambling, Resource Package (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 2001). Gambling neutral, this new and revised resource package shares the same goal as the previously described package (Community Information Session on Problem Gambling, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, 1999) but offers detailed information for specific populations presented using a PowerPoint presentation that can be customized to promote the presenter’s specific program needs and services. This comprehensive package contains information on how to conduct public presentations and public awareness initiatives, as well as providing detailed information for the user unfamiliar with using PowerPoint. Included is a 10-minute video that presents general information about gambling, gambling problems, and resources available in Ontario (although the authors note that they will customize the program for any jurisdiction).

The resource package is divided into numerous sections that can be utilized or ignored depending on the target population. First, general information on gambling, problem gambling and gambling treatment are presented in a similar manner as the original awareness presentation package. This is followed by a section dealing with information on prevalence, vulnerability factors, reasons individuals gamble, signs and symptoms of problem and pathological gambling, and prevention and treatment considerations (barriers and resources) are presented for specific vulnerable and high-risk populations (youth, seniors, first nation’s people, women, and ethno-cultural groups).

Detailed information is presented for specific populations that may be predetermined by environmental factors (e.g., people involved in the criminal justice systems, gambling in correctional facilities and treatment options in such institutions). Another section explores the relationship between gambling and anxiety, depression and suicide, and targets individuals touched by mental health issues. The impact of gambling, warning signs, strategies to employ when one suspects a gambling problem, and available resources are also is presented specifically for people in the financial sector, the health care system, and the work place.

Finally, eight different appendices offer additional information (resource guide, references, screening and assessment tools, case studies) and handouts (guidelines for safe gambling, screening and assessment tools, a “Fact or Myth Quiz,” and a “Bingo Awareness Game”) to make a greater impact on participants.

Appendix C

Gambling Industry Responsible Gaming Resources and Materials

Responsible Gaming Education Week

Beginning in 1998, the American Gaming Association has designated one week in August as Responsible Gaming Education Week. During this week, casino properties and gaming equipment manufactures engage employees in awareness raising activities about underage and problem gambling and the importance of responsible gaming practices. Companies often introduce new responsible gaming employee training initiatives and resources at this time. The week is also an opportunity for government officials to issue proclamations and focus public attention on the importance of responsible gambling. During the most recent Responsible Gaming Education Week (August 2-6, 2004), the AGA supplied all of its member companies with material to help increase awareness of their Code of Conduct for Responsible Gaming. Properties were encouraged to display posters and prominently display responsible gaming information on casino floors and in employee areas, and to distribute buttons, stickers and ribbons for employees to wear. (Responsible Gaming Quarterly, July 2004).

Harrah’s Entertainment Project 21 and Operation Bet Smart Project 21

This is an education program that provides casino employees, minors, parents and guardians information concerning the negative consequences of underage gambling. Included within the program is the training of casino employees on how to recognize underage gamblers and techniques for their removal from the gaming floor. As well, this program provides educational materials (e.g., public service announcements) and scholarships awarded to winners of poster, educational articles and video contests. In 1995, Harrah’s began licensing Project 21 to state gaming associations as well as casinos in the U.S. and Canada. Currently casino properties in 14 states participant in some aspect of the Project 21 program. (Responsible Gaming Quarterly, Winter, 2004).

Operation Bet Smart

This program was developed to increase awareness in casino employees on how to recognize problem gamblers and techniques as to how to offer assistance. This program also provides signage that can help problem gamblers acquire the assistance they need. Similar initiatives have been duplicated in other casinos and/or modified and adopted by State Lotteries (e.g., New York Lottery’s Project 18+).

Manitoba Problem Gambling Customer Assistance Program

This program begun in 1998 was developed by the Addictions foundation of Manitoba for owners and employees of establishments offering video lottery terminals (VLT’s) (Smitheringale, 2001). The program is designed to increase understanding of problem gambling, identify customers who may be experiencing gambling problems, increase awareness of resources for help for problem gamblers and provide strategies for assisting customers with problems. Since the initial piloting phase, the training program has become mandatory for employees at all VLT sites. Participants in the course report significant increases in knowledge of problem gambling and learning of skills to assist customers experiencing gambling problems. Ninety-eight percent of participants reported they would use the information and 99% felt they would be able to provide assistance to a customer who was concerned about their gambling and asked for help (Smitheringale, 2001).

As Luck Would Have It

This is a 2-hour awareness workshop aimed at VLT retailers in Quebec. This program provides retailers with information about chance and randomness, describes a connection between misunderstanding chance and excessive gambling, presents the signs and symptoms of problem gambling and describes how to intervene in cases where retailers choose to do so. Evaluation (Ladouceur et al., 2004) found that retailers increased their understanding of problem gambling and felt more capable of address problem gamblers. At follow-up retailers who had attended the workshop were significantly more likely than those who had not to report they had actually approached a problem gambler and offered assistance.

Responsible Gaming Information Center

This program was developed through a partnership between the Addictions Foundation of Manitoba (AFM) and the Manitoba Lotteries. The center, located at a Winnipeg area casino is staffed by AFM counselors who provide customers with education about how gambling works using the Safe@Play slot machine tutorial. On request, Center staff provide on-site support and referral for customers, consultation for casino staff and participate in interviews with customers seeking self-exclusion. Originally developed as a pilot project, this has now become a permanent program and will be implemented in other Winnipeg area casinos (Volberg, personal communication with Mehmel).

When the Stakes are Too High (California Council on Problem Gambling).

CCPG provides on site training or curriculum licensing of this gaming industry employee training program. This interactive training program is intended to empower employees with knowledge so they will be able to assist people who ask for help with a gambling problem.

The California Council training program is available in two methods. The 60-minute curriculum, which includes a professionally edited short video series, and trainer’s presentation can be instructed on-site by The Council’s professional trainer. The Council will also license use of the curriculum, following the completion of a four-hour instructor certification workshop. An additional feature of the training curriculum is information on assisting co-workers with a gambling problem.

Advancing Responsible Gaming (North American Training Institute, 2003).

This kit contains a 20 minute video and comprehensive book designed for gaming industry management. The kit provides information for the design and development of a company responsible gaming program. (www.nati.org).

Underage Gambling: A Bad Bet for the Gaming Industry (North American Training Institute, 2003).