UNLV study bolsters call for gambling program funds

UNLV study bolsters call for gambling program funds
by Nolan Lister

Interviews give evidence that threatened therapy service is working well
Lori Flores started gambling at a young age — an addiction that led her to hit rock bottom. At one point, she was caught stealing money from her employer to feed her gambling addiction. It was at that moment that Flores realized she needed help.

“I couldn’t deal with the day-to-day any longer,” said Flores, 40, who checked into the Problem Gambling Center of Las Vegas in 2006. “I thought my life was over. It was difficult to understand the problem until I got away from it.”

Programs like the one offered at the Problem Gambling Center of Las Vegas have helped thousands of people break their addiction to gambling, but the proposed cuts to Nevada’s budget could leave these programs largely underfunded.

By the time many people afflicted with a gambling addiction seek help, they have nothing left and require financial assistance to enroll in problem gambling programs, said Bo Bernhard, a UNLV professor of sociology and hotel management.

“These clinics don’t want to turn people away because they can’t pay,” he said.

Bernhard is leading an investigation to determine the effectiveness of problem gambling programs in Las Vegas. He and his team of UNLV student researchers have been conducting interviews with patients from six different clinics in the Las Vegas Valley.

The interviews are conducted at six-month intervals by the students who follow strict scripts and protocol.

Nevada subsidizes these programs in order to help those in need of assistance but this also helps the state’s overall financial health in the long run by reducing costs of welfare and other items on the budget, Bernhard asserted.

“Nevada tries to be the leader in all areas in gaming, including responsible gaming,” he said.

Research has shown the programs have a positive effect on the lives of nearly all patients. Three years after graduating from the program, 19 of 20 patients reported having greatly reduced their gambling or completely removed gambling from their lives, Bernhard said.

“What we found helped the most was the quality of the personal bonds patients developed with counselors,” he said. “Problem gamblers tend to lose touch with people, the outside world and the counselors help patients to reconnect with family and friends.”

The study done by Bernhard and his team sought to show the success of and need for programs like the Problem Gambling Center of Las Vegas. The Nevada Department of Health and Human Services is expected to refer to the study in its effort to lobby the state Legislature for continued funding for the program.

Currently, program leaders think that they stand to receive the same amount of state money as they did last year, but they also say that level of funding leaves services strained.

Flores graduated from the Problem Gambling Center of Las Vegas in August 2007 and is now no longer gambling, but she is concerned about the possible loss of government funds.

“If there is no place to go for help, there would be no end for compulsive gamblers,” she said. “The classes gave me hope and helped me rebuild my life.”