August 16, 2001 - Counselors and social workers gain certification to deal with problem gambling as hotline brings in referrals

The Kansas Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) has been working with the Kansas Coalition on Problem Gambling to increase the number of trained professionals who can deal with problem gambling. The Kansas Coalition on Problem Gambling is the credentialing body for counselor certification for compulsive gambling in Kansas.

Most attending a recent training session had Master’s degrees in counseling or social work. As they went around the room introducing themselves, the reason they were there became clear.

"There are four casinos in our catchment area," said one man. "We’re beginning to see the fallout from that."

"I have families coming in where gambling is an issue," said a woman who identified herself as a licensed clinical social worker.

The class of 16 men and women held in July was part of the second, 60-hour training session used to gain counselor certification to deal with problem gambling. Previously, 18 people completed the course and were certified in June.

The 2000 Kansas Legislature established the problem gambling fund, and SRS set up a hotline to connect problem gamblers or their families with assistance. The hotline, 1-866-NO BET 00 or 1-866-662-3800 – has been operating since March. Those gaining the certification after the training will receive referrals from the hotline.

The coalition is a section of the Kansas Association of Addiction Professionals, which in turn is affiliated with the National Council on Problem Gambling. Joanne Franklin, the executive director of the national council taught the class in Topeka. Franklin, who is also president of the Maryland Council on Compulsive Gambling, is alternating with other experts to provide the training in Kansas.

In introducing the course on treatment for problem gambling, Ms. Franklin said information about the treatment for problem gamblers is evolving. She said it has been treated as both an addiction as well as a mental health problem, and affects a broad range of people. "We are trying to understand it," she said. "We have people in crisis whose lives are falling apart. It is devastating for families to go through."

Ms. Franklin said Kansas was ahead of most states in dealing with problem gambling by setting up the hotline and providing counselor training. She said the next important step would be to provide public funding for treatment because problem gamblers, by the time the problem is recognized, often have lost everything and have no money to pay for treatment."Without subsidized treatment, problem gamblers lose out," she said.

The purpose of the course work is to train professionals to be able to identify and assist compulsive gamblers. Also high on the agenda is to work with problem gamblers to develop a debt repayment plan, said Joyce Markham, president of the Kansas Coalition on Problem Gambling.

Training has also been coordinated with the Regional Alcohol and Drug Assessment Centers and the mental health centers across the state. Markham said this is because a high percentage of individuals who have gambling problems also have a substance abuse addiction. "They go through alcohol and drug treatment, but if the gambling addiction is not identified also, it can be a relapse trigger," said Markham.

Markham said the number of calls to the hotline ebbs and flows, often depending on press coverage. She said many of the calls are from family members of compulsive gamblers, trying to find a way to get help for a loved one.