FEATURE: GAMCARE on delivering our strategy and developing strong relationships with our many stakeholders, including our funders. How does your expertise, gained from your roles at Employee Assistance Programme, assist you with your role? Having spent time as clinical director of a global Employee Assistance Programme, I was able to develop a solid understanding of telephone and online support structures as well as understanding how to deliver treatment on a large scale in a seamless and effective way. At GamCare we seek to offer the best possible standard of professional service, utilising the most current and proven methods gathered from a variety of sectors, including EAP. What are the main challenges for GamCare at this time? As with any charity, the consistency and security of funding is the biggest challenge. We have been fortunate to receive funding for our core services throughout the life of the Charity, but as we approach the end of our current agreements, we cannot be complacent, and we must continue to ensure we offer the most efficient and effective service available. TV Advertising and sports events seem to have more gambling advertised than ever before. How is that reflecting in your latest statistics? It is difficult to suggest any direct result impacting our service due to advertising, but we do see trends over time. We have seen a gradual growth in the number of people contacting us year on year - some of this may be due to broader access to gambling opportunities, and that is in part promoted through advertising. Is GamCare able to apply research on methods of treating gambling addiction from other countries? Yes, our clinical teams are always looking at the latest research on a global scale. Our employees attend a variety of events to stay abreast of new research, and in some cases we present on innovative methods to treat problem gambling at international conferences and forums. Do treatments pioneered in other countries carry over to the UK? Gambling addiction and gambling problems are characterised in a similar fashion around the world. The treatments used do not vary much from country to country, but the funding structures and availability of treatment does. We are quite fortunate in Great Britain to have a solid and pro-active structure that supports 36
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