SY17-3 * WORKING TOWARDS A HARM INDEX IN PROBLEM GAMBLING: DOES TYPE OF PLAY AND LEVEL OF INVOLVEMENT DETERMINE SEVERITY OF PRESENTATION? A UK STUDY (HARM INDEX STUDY 1)

Introduction. Data from the 2010 British Gambling Prevalence Survey (BGPS) estimated that in the United Kingdom, the prevalence of problem gambling was about 0.9%. Amongst the general population, the most popular types of gambling are poker, dog races, slot machines and casino games. Previous international research emphasized that some forms of gambling are more “addictive” than others, with online gambling and gaming machines presenting with a higher association to gambling disorder. More recently, in the last year, research has shown that we should shift our attention from type of gambling to level of involvement in a number of different types of gambling activities. Method. We analyzed data from 736 patients assessed at the National Problem Gambling Clinic during a period of two years (2011–2012) and report the characteristics of the treatment seeking population. Result. We compare gamblers' activities and the level of involvement in relation to the severity of presentation of gambling symptoms.