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Exposure therapy for problem gambling in rural communities: a program model and early outcomes
Ben Riley1, David Smith, Jane Oakes
1Department of Psychiatry, Flinders University, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia. ben.riley@health.sa.gov.au
The Australian Journal of Rural Health
|May 25, 2011
Summary
An outreach exposure therapy program effectively treated problem gambling in rural South Australia, showing significant improvements comparable to urban services. These findings support expanded rural mental health care.
Area of Science:
- Psychiatry
- Public Health
- Clinical Psychology
Background:
- Rural South Australia has higher rates of gambling machines and expenditure per capita.
- This disparity raises concerns about increased problem gambling risks in rural communities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the implementation and outcomes of a rural outreach behavioral psychotherapy program for problem gambling.
- To compare treatment outcomes between rural and metropolitan problem gamblers.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective cohort study of 551 adult problem gamblers.
- Compared outcomes for 51 rural participants in an outreach program versus metropolitan participants.
- Utilized South Oaks Gambling Screen, Kessler Psychological Distress Scale, Work and Social Adjustment Scale, and gambling hours.
Main Results:
- Treatment completion rates were similar between rural and metropolitan groups.
- Significant improvements observed across all outcome measures for both groups.
- No significant post-treatment outcome differences between rural and metropolitan participants after controlling for baseline scores.
Conclusions:
- Exposure therapy outreach program yielded significant clinical improvements for rural problem gamblers.
- Outcomes were comparable to those of metropolitan-based services.
- Findings encourage future treatment planning and research for rural gambling addiction.
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