Gordon Moody have had to remain aware of the ever-changing profile of clients over the last years to ensure their treatment remains effective. As a result, a comprehensive, clinical assessment is used for clients applying for treatment. Assessments are carried out by trained and experienced staff. The purpose of this comprehensive assessment is to ascertain the level of risk both to the client in terms of mental health, suicidality, and other issues such as substance abuse alongside safeguarding risks to those around them, such as dependents, parents, or siblings.
Complex Cases
It is noticeable that over the past few years, there has been an increase in the severity of complexity which clients are presenting with, as the table below shows.
Gordon Moody’s assessment found that people with both problem gambling and substance abuse problems were more likely to have attempted suicide at some point in their lives and to have reported problems with sexual compulsivity. We also found that people with both problems also tended to engage in risky sexual behaviour. Gambling also proved to be a potential reinforcer of drug use, an obstacle to success in drug treatment programs and a substitute activity that increased as people stopped using drugs.
Suicidality
This figure represents those who have expressed thoughts of taking their own life during their application process. The figures have been consistently high in applications to Gordon Moody. The majority claim that they would not act on thoughts of suicide or self-harm predominantly through consideration to loved ones and dependents but of those that expressed suicidal thoughts in the past 12 months. 25% of applicants report having made an attempt or having planned to make an attempt of their own life.
Mental Health
The number of applicants who have been diagnosed with mental health issues has steadily increased by 44% over the last five years. The most prevalent mental health challenges that our services users faced in the last three years, apart from depression (37.9%) and anxiety (37.4), are Emotionally Unstable Personality Disorder (27,7%), PTSD, anti-social personality disorder (17%)
Particular similarities were observed between pathological gambling and EUPD clinical tableaux in areas such as impulsivity, emotional dysregulation, volatile interpersonal relationships, anxious attachment styles, a tendency for dissociation and rapid mood swings, high suicidality risks.
Gordon Moody is committed to working with other providers to treat mental health issues and will continue to raise the issue of Gambling Harm as a Public Health concern.
Criminal Justice
Applicants who have been involved in the criminal justice system as a result of their gambling activity has fallen over the last five years but still affects 1 in 4 of those who apply for treatment at Gordon Moody. We work with partners and initiatives such as the Criminal Justice Service set up by Gamcare to ensure our applicants get the support they need and, in recovery working with others to minimise the risk of clients re-offending.
Other Addictions
Both excessive alcohol and illicit drug use remain consistently prevalent in those that apply to Gordon Moody for treatment. Substance misuse presents a significant risk to applicants at Gordon Moody; introducing a client who has a dependency on other substances can negatively affect the treatment of the individual and those around us. To protect ourselves and to provide the correct level of support to our clients, the introduction of comprehensive assessments this year combined with our offer of pre-support help us to assess and offer the right level of support for those struggling with substance abuse.
Integrated Care
Partnering with a growing number of other organisations will aid us in our vision to support those detailed above in getting to the right level of treatment at the right time. Working with organisations such as the NHS, CAIS and Changes UK on providing an integrated support programme in the future to build on the current referral pathways we have built over the course of the past year.
We have embedded co-production across our services and deliver care developed alongside those with lived experience, resulting in tailored and bespoke packages of care that allow the individual to set goals, identify potential barriers, build recovery capital, and personal resilience resourcefulness. The mission is finding and sustaining recovery from harmful behaviours.
We understand individuals with complex needs and have developed services that, alongside evidenced interventions for addiction treatment, focus on addressing issues such as trauma, adverse childhood experiences, domestic abuse, grief and loss, parenting, and practical life skills support.
Dragos Dragomir – Clinical Director.