MISSION AND VALUES
Mission
The New Mexico Council on Problem Gambling is dedicated to increasing public awareness about compulsive gambling in a culturally sensitive manner; providing treatment and prevention services at no cost for problem gamblers, their families, and vulnerable youth. NMCPG local staff personally man and operate a 24-hour crisis intervention hotline (1-800-Gambler); the building of education initiatives for behavioral health providers and ongoing training & certification programs for gaming industry employees, while maintaining neutrality in legalized gambling.
Values
The New Mexico Council on Problem Gambling (NMCPG) values problem gambling treatment and prevention programs (i.e., crisis intervention) for problem gamblers, their families, and vulnerable youth that validate quality, cost effectiveness, sustainability, and commitment to New Mexico, while maintaining neutrality in legalized gambling.
HISTORY & EXPERIENCE
Experience Background
The NMCPG was founded in 1998 by Kandace Blanchard, LPCC, Director, to provide resources, public awareness, and education on problem gambling, in a culturally sensitive manner, to compulsive gamblers, their families, and vulnerable youth, while maintaining neutrality in legalized gambling. The organization’s mission is to increase public awareness about compulsive gambling in a culturally sensitive manner; provide treatment and prevention services to problem gamblers, their families, and vulnerable youth; operate the 24-hour crisis intervention hotline; and build education initiatives for behavioral health providers and responsible gaming advocates, while maintaining neutrality in legalized gambling. As the State’s Affiliate Member of the NCPG, the NMCPG provides current and accurate information on problem gambling treatment and prevention programs to responsible gaming advocates in New Mexico, such as the lottery, racetracks, casinos, fraternal organizations, behavioral health providers, New Mexico Compulsive Gambling Council, New Mexico Gaming Control Board (NMGCB), and New Mexico Lottery Authority (NMLA). Membership benefits include access to timely information, professional development opportunities, increased networking tools, industry discounts, and support for advocacy initiatives.
In 2006, the NMCPG spearheaded the statewide Specialty Certification in Problem Gambling (SCPG) to help New Mexico implement a comprehensive certification program for behavioral health professionals (BHP) treating gambling disorders. The SCPG is a voluntary process initiated by qualified BHPs interested in completing the certification and application process.
In 2009, the NMCPG joined forces with the Governor’s Task Force on Compulsive Gambling (GTFCG) and the New Mexico Compulsive Gambling Council to develop the “New Mexico Strategic Prevention and Treatment Approach to Compulsive Gambling Plan”. Advocates of the Plan included the lottery, racetracks, casinos, fraternal organizations, behavioral health entities, NCPG, Responsible Gaming Association of New Mexico, NMGCB, and NMLA. This initiative established the New Mexico Problem Gambling Standards, including budgeting, data collection, program planning, system evaluation, and standardization for employee trainings in each gaming entity.
NMCPG is dedicated to problem (compulsive) gambling prevention and treatment programs, Funding is derived from The NMLA & a .25 of 1% tax on non-tribal gaming enterprises. The GTFCG granted authority to the NMCPG to ensure transparency and coordination of problem gambling treatment and prevention programs in New Mexico. Since then, the NMCPG has maintained the CGTF based on the principals of: (a) standardized employee trainings, (b) single administrative authority, (c) transparency, and (d) dedicated team of professionals.
In 2013, the Diagnostic Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition (DSM-5), by the American Psychiatric Association, recognized the “gambling disorder” as a diagnosable mental health condition under “Substance-Related and Addiction Disorders” for the first time in history. According to the DSM, problem gambling encompasses, but is not limited to, the terms “pathological” and “compulsive” gambling. “Although some behavioral conditions that do not involve the ingestion of substances have similarities to substance-related disorders, only one disorder—gambling disorder—has sufficient data to be included in this [Addictive Disorders] section.”
As responsible gaming advocates begin to acknowledge the prevalence of gambling diseases in society and the growing demand for effective problem gambling treatment and prevention solutions, the NMCPG is driving efforts at state and national levels to reduce the negative impacts of gambling disorders in the state. Our professionals are committed to working with responsible gambling stakeholders to provide problem gambling treatment and prevention solutions that promote self-sufficient communities in a culturally sensitive manner. The NMCPG’s reputation is synonymous with delivering measurable results that generate favorable return on services rendered.
BOARD & STAFF
Board Of Directors
Ron Wallace, President
Marisol Padilla, Vice President
Kandace Blanchard, Secretary
Debbie Berkemeyer, Member
Ruth Bitsui, Member
Leona Breading, Member
Ronna Krugger, Member
Dr. John Rinaldi, Member
Staff
Kandace Blanchard MA, LPCC, Founder, Clinical Director
Dr. John Rinaldi, Gaming Establishment Employee Trainer, Behavioral Health Therapist & Trainer