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Michigan Department of Community Health to Sponsor Problem Gambling Conference at Northern Michigan University
August 01, 2001
Michigan Department of Community Health Director, James K. Haveman, Jr., today announced that the department will sponsor a conference on problem gambling on August 8. The conference is co-sponsored by the Upper Peninsula Problem Gambling Task Force and the Health Promotion Office at Northern Michigan University.
The conference, entitled The Community Response to Problem Gambling, Prevention, Intervention and Treatment, will be held in the Brule-Cadillac Room of the University Center, Northern Michigan University in Marquette. Registration begins at 9:00 a.m. with the conference concluding at 4:30 p.m.
The conference will begin with a morning session led by Jim McBryde, Special Assistant for Drug Policy with the Michigan Department of Community Health. McBryde will discuss Michigan's programs for dealing with gambling addiction, the state's Helpline and counseling programs, statewide media campaign and plans for prevention services.
Nelson Westrin, Executive Director of the Michigan Gaming Control Board, will be the keynote speaker and will speak on the impacts of gambling on a community, the Board's role in regulating casinos and what communities and the gaming industry should be doing to minimize problems.
Members of the Upper Peninsula Problem Gambling Task Force, chaired by Dr. Debra Smith from Bell Behavioral Services, will also discuss the regional needs assessment and plan developed by that group that focused specifically on the problem in the Upper Peninsula. Panel presentations in the afternoon will address tribal initiatives to assist those in need, counseling and prevention programs, financial counseling services, and legal and court perspectives.
The conference is open to the public and is free of charge but advance registration is necessary. For more information or for registration materials call the Conference Department at Northern Michigan University (906) 227-2623.