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BACKGROUND: Gambling can lead to a gambling disorder which requires specific treatment interventions. Help to problem and pathological gamblers is mostly provided through a network of addiction treatment services, i.e. services for people addicted to drugs. AIMS: This paper aims at mapping the forms and accessibility of specialised counselling and treatment services targeted at problem gamblers in the Czech Republic.METHODS: Facility surveys among addiction treatment programmes conducted in 2012 and 2014 which have the character of a census and data from the final reports of the governmental subsidy proceedings in 2013 and 2014. SAMPLE: There were 254 programmes participating in the facility survey in 2012 and 271 in 2014. The sample based on the governmental subsidy proceedings consisted of 144 programmes both in 2013 and 2014. RESULTS: There are currently 250-300 specialised addiction treatment programmes in the Czech Republic. Of the 254 facilities that participated in the survey in 2012, 133 declared that pathological gamblers were one of the target groups of the service, and 18 programmes offered specialised help. In 2014, there were 138 programmes that considered pathological gamblers as one of their target groups, of which 10-20 programmes were specialised. Substance use counselling services, psychiatric outpatient counselling or treatment programmes, and psychiatric hospitals account for the majority of these specialised programmes. Apart from specialised services, self-help programmes have appeared recently, and pathological gamblers are clients of other treatment and counselling services, including social and legal assistance. Debt counselling is an indispensable intervention in its own right.CONCLUSION: The accessibility of specialised services for problem gamblers in the Czech Republic is low; there are about 10-20 programmes. There is no dense network of counselling and treatment services focusing on pathological gambling, and self-help programmes are yet to be developed. In addition, telephonebased and online counselling options are limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: Excessive gambling can lead to the development of gambling disorder (problem gambling). AIMS: To estimate the prevalence and describe patterns of problem gambling in the Czech Republic. METHODS: (1) National Survey 2012, a cross-sectional questionnaire survey on the general population aged 15-64 (N=2,134), which included the Problem Gambling Severity Index (PGSI), (2) omnibus questionnaire survey on population aged 15+ sampled using quotas in 2013 and 2014 (N=1,797 and 1,810 respectively), which included the Lie/Bet test, and (3) omnibus questionnaire survey on general practitioners and paediatricians in 2012 and 2014, which included question on the prevalence of problem (pathological) gamblers (N=551 and 550 respectively). RESULTS: According to PGSI, the prevalence of problem gambling in the adult population in 2012 was estimated as 5.1% (7.4% of males and 2.8% of females), about 2.3% were in moderate and high risk, of which 0.6% were in high risk (1.2% of males and 0.0% of females). The results of the Lie/Bet test (score of at least one point) in 2014 showed that 4.9% of the adult population were at risk (7.4% of males and 2.6% of females). According to PGSI, 6.2% of young adults aged 15-34 in 2012, and 5.3% according to the Lie/Bet in 2014 were at risk. The survey among GPs estimated 80-90 thousand problem (pathological) gamblers (0.9-1.0% of the adult population) in 2012 and 90-110 thousand (1.0-1.2%) in 2014. The youngest age group 15-24, had the highest proportion of persons at risk, but those aged 35-44 had the highest proportion of the high-risk category. Playing on electronic gaming machines (EGMs) represents the highest risk of gambling disorder - at least 1/3 of gamblers on EGMs were at risk of problem gambling; for fixed odds betting and on-line gambling it was at least 1/4 of the gamblers. CONCLUSION: About 5% of adult Czech population are in risk of a gambling disorder. Of those, 1.5-2.3% are problem gamblers, among those 0.6-1.2% are pathological gamblers. Problem gambling is mostly associated with EGMs, an increase in problem gambling related to fixed odds, live betting and on-line gambling can be expected. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

BACKGROUND: The inpatient treatment of pathological gambling is specific in many ways. The complications include the lack of motivation or insight and psychological comorbidity, involving especially personality disorders. AIMS: To describe the personality profile of a sample of pathological gamblers in treatment using the PSSI Inventory and to compare it with population norms, as well as analysing the basic relationships between the PSSI scales, attachment styles, and other variables in the sample of pathological gamblers. SAMPLE: The sample consisted of 147 men (mean age = 34.6 years) hospitalised for pathological gambling in the psychiatric hospitals in Bohnice, Kroměříž, and Opava. 144 inventories were able to be used for the analysis. METHODS: Data was collected using the PSSI clinical personality inventory, SOGS, and ECR questionnaires and a structured interview. RESULTS: The scores of all the PSSI scales are, on average, at least 1SD higher than the norm. A weak correlation was found between the "schizotypal", "borderline", and "narcissistic" PSSI scales and the SOGS score. A relationship between the attachment style and PSSI was found. A relationship was also found between the PSSI scores and suicidal thoughts, repeated treatment, and other drug use. CONCLUSIONS: In comparison with the normal population, the sample exhibits a higher occurrence of various risk factors, psychiatric comorbidity, and other problematic behaviour. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]