Message from the Chairperson

As we move into our busiest time of year I would like to thank all those who have been instrumental to our success in bringing the community a range of resources to support Responsible Gambling Awareness Week 2009. Many of these people are volunteers and health/welfare professionals who are doing this work on top of their existing duties. We are sincerely grateful for their support. We hope therefore you that you will extend these activities by becoming actively involved in the week either as a participant at our launching seminar in Sydney on May 11th and/or by actively promoting the week in your own services and locality.

Problem gambling is an insidious psychological health disorder which is permeating our society. Quietly and often without notice people are being damaged often by products which are specifically designed to ensure the success of a business and tax revenue raising activity at the cost of a community and its members. Like alcohol and tobacco, gambling is a legalised activity but unlike these other products the actual cost of use can be difficult to define. It is not a fixed contract and as a result, particularly in relation to the use of Electronic Gaming Machines (pokies) -the consumer rarely knows exactly what the costs of “play” will be. As a result many people are getting into difficulties.

At the last count (1999 Productivity Commission Inquiry into Australia’ Gambling Industries) 300,000 people nationally had significant gambling problems and by today’s population that is more like 500,000. For every one person gambling problematically there are at least 5-10 others negatively affected.

This year, 2009, the Federal Government has decided to call another Productivity Inquiry into gambling to review our harm minimisation measures and industry activities. As a result the Gambling Impact Society's aim this year is to focus attention on the needs of communities, individuals and families to have our governments recognise problem gambling as a specific health issue requiring similar population/public health strategies to address it as we do for alcohol and tobacco. We need your support in these endeavours.

The enclosed information will provide you with a good overview of the health implications of problem gambling and why we need a population health approach. This is in contrast to what we have at the moment in NSW which is primarily an individual treatment focused model. Whilst we fully acknowledge the need for treatment for individuals and families, we also firmly believe this is not enough. People need education, information and early intervention programs to develop the capacity not to develop a problem with gambling. Products for gambling need to be made safer, particularly poker machines which are recognised as the main form of gambling harm. We need technological changes to protect consumers and programs to protect against and prevent harm not just minimise it. This is what we call a health promotion/public health approach . As a community we need to fully embrace this approach if we are serious about reducing harm.

I therefore invite you to consider becoming a member of our organisation to support our work, attend our seminar, voice your concerns, promote awareness of this issue and enhance your service by reaching out to those affected. Even by displaying the enclosed poster, you are sending a message to your community that “this is a safe place where I can talk about this problem” - thereby reducing the stigma of seeking support. Further educational resources including a Responsible Gambling Awareness Week Toolkit and full set of help sheets are available on our website and can be downloaded for your clients/customers. Many community services last year received a free DVD entitled Less than Even: The Hidden Costs of Gambling. We encourage you to use to this to promote the week in your service.

We look forward to working with you in the future and thank you for your efforts during this week.

Kind regards

Kate Roberts

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