25 May 2016
Media Coverage – Gambling
The numbers of people presenting with a gambling problem at Dublin’s Rutland Centre have trebled in just two years.
The consequences of a serious gambling problem can nevertheless be “truly devastating” according to Maebh Leahy, chief executive of the Rutland Centre.A registered charity established in 1978, currently the Rutland Centre deals with around 400 people per year who present with differing forms of addiction, including alcohol, drugs, sex, food, and gambling.
At present the Rutland receives no government funding. And its figures for those presenting with a gambling problem are steadily increasing. They’ve gone from just 3% of clients in 2013 to just under 10% for 2015, a three-fold increase.
On the same subject, Maebh Leahy, Chief Executive at Rutland Centre, gives a detailed interview about Gambling addictions
The amount of people coming forward with a gambling addiction has grown by 6.5% in 2016 compared to 2013, according to the Rutland Centre. The centre treats 400 people per year for all types of addiction and has called for the government to regulate the gambling industry here.
Just 3% of the addicts who came to the Rutland centre in 2013 were gambling addicts, rising to 7% 2014/2015 and 9.5% this year.
Maebh Leahy, Chief Executive of the Rutland Centre, said: “Gambling is very much an emerging but serious addiction in Ireland. Unlike other addictions, gambling can be a well-hidden addiction but the personal and social cost can be enormous.
Read full article HERE