Presented by ASA’s Mental Health and Aging Network (MHAN) 

ASA Members: Register now for FREE

Not a Member? Join ASA or Register for this event for $49

Includes complimentary CEUs

This webinar is based on the workshop “Older Adults and Gambling: Getting Their Attention to Prevent Harm” that was presented at the 2016 Aging in America Conference.

Gambling is one of the most common recreational activities for older adults with more than 60% reporting that they gamble (Moore, 2001; Schiemann, 2006; Levens, Dyer, Zubritsky, Knott, & Oslin, 2005; Weibe, et al., 2004). Bus trips to casinos and other forms of gambling are frequently offered by residential and community programs with casinos and lotteries designing marketing campaigns which target them. While most people gamble safely, some people develop problems related to it, and those problems can be devastating to older adults and their families. Depending upon the study, between 2 and 25% of older adults experience problem gambling (Gerstein et al., 1999; Sumitra & Miller, 2005; Welte, Barnes, Tidwell, & Hoffman, 2011). People joining this webinar will learn the characteristics of older adults that place them at-risk for gambling problems, the signs of problem gambling, simple screening tools to try to identify problems, strategies to help older adults keep gambling safe and fun, and the resources available to help when people have a problem.

Participants in this web seminar will be able to:

• Recognize three or more specific characteristics of older adults that place them at risk for problem gambling;
• Recognize three or more specific characteristics of older adults that place them at risk for problem gambling;
• Understand how to use “The 10 Rules of Responsible Gaming” as a prevention and harm reduction strategy;
• Understand the cognitive and behavioral “hooks” of gambling; and
• Identify potential adverse events related to dopamine agonist use and gambling

Presenters:

Beth Mulvaney is a social worker with 20-plus years of experience working with older adults and their families both in the community and in long-term care. Since 2009 she has collaborated on projects to prevent older adults from developing gambling-related problems and helping professionals recognize if or when they do.

Jody Bechtold is a social worker with 15 years of experience working with individuals and families affected by addiction. Since 2007 she has focused her attention to legalized expanded gambling and its impact on individuals, families, and communities. Since 2008, she has dedicated her efforts on prevention, intervention, treatment, education and awareness of gambling disorders in workshops, webinars, presentations, and keynotes.