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With new casinos on way, the first NHS clinic for addict gamblers
Mark Blunden, Evening Standard17 Jul 2008
Britain's first specialist NHS clinic for gambling addicts is due to open in Soho in September, the Evening Standard can reveal.
The Soho Problem Gambling Clinic will treat sufferers from across the country and, for the first time, the 12-month pilot could even have live-in facilities for "extreme cases" of debtridden addicts at risk of suicide.
The clinic is funded by the gaming industry, through the Responsibility in Gambling Trust and will open as councils across Britain invite bids for 16 large and small casinos under the Gambling Act 2005.
It will be run by the Central and North-West London NHS Foundation Trust and headed by addictions expert and consultant psychiatrist Dr Henrietta Bowden-Jones.
She told the Standard: "We will treat not just the problem gambler but any member of their family and people affected by their addiction. We are at present purely an outpatient service but would be keen to be funded for in-patient beds for extreme cases when gamblers may become suicidal because of debts."
A 2007 national survey of the £9billion-a-year industry showed one in five problem gamblers become addicted.
Patients at the free clinic - including those in their late teens - can either be referred or refer themselves. The resident psychologists and counsellors will use cognitive behavioural therapy during the intensive 12-week course to encourage gambling addicts to find alternative, more positive ways to live.
It will specialise in treating patients with other mental health problems, such as bipolar disorder, depression and anxiety.
The clinic, which will be housed at the Soho Centre for Health in Frith Street, will also offer debt management, employment and relationship advice and include Gamblers Anonymous and the support charity Gamcare.
The Gambling Commission estimates there are around 250,000 problem gamblers in Britain, although Gamblers Anonymous believes it is nearer 600,000. Gamcare receives more than 38,000 calls a year, 11.5 per cent of which come from London, with GPs reporting seeing increasing numbers of problem gamblers seeking help.
The British Medical Association wants gambling to be a recognised addiction with care in the NHS, which currently offers only patchy treatment.
Private care can be expensive, with the Capio Nightingale Hospital in Marylebone offering a 28-day residential programme costing £5,000.
Adrian Scarfe, head of clinical services at Gamcare, said: "We see people from all walks of life, from sportspeople to City workers to homeless people and people falling into six-figure debts are not unusual."
Last year, the gambling industry paid £3.6million into treatment programmes but the BMA wants at least £10million annually. The clinic is slated to open on 15 September but is already taking referrals
Reader views (3)
Drug addicts are helped and so are alcoholics who need new livers on the NHS and greedy people who eat too much and get obese then demand stomach operations so why should they be treated any better than those who suffer from the mental illness of compulsive gambling?
Help for problem gamblers is virtually non-existent. The government makes heaps from the gambling industry so some of this should be set aside to help problem gamblers or tax reintroduced on gambling to help those who are casualties of the betting industry.
- John,, Taunton, Somerset, 18/06/2009 11:18
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I totally disagree with the previous comment and I think that it is about time that the NHS provide this kind of service and accepts gambling as a recognised addiction. Pathological gambling is a progressive disease and can be linked to family history and genetics, it's not just someone with a weakness to spend money! It can not only have a severe negative effect on the gambler themselves but also on their family's lives. Just like other diseases of the human body and mind that are treated by the NHS, those with gambling addictions should have the opportunity to get help and be supported at NHS facilities!
- Sarah, Ascot, Berkshire, 23/07/2008 23:27
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I do not believe that NHS resources should be used for this problem.
- Anne Mcpaul, Streatham, London, 17/07/2008 14:29
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