A name change for the Centre for Problem Gambling and Digital Dependency at Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare in Windsor.
It has been officially renamed the Ontario Centre for Problem Gambling.
Hospital officials say the new name reflects the program’s recognized role as a provincial leader in problem gambling treatment and highlights its broad reach in delivering evidence-based, specialized care to patients, clients, and families both locally and across Ontario.
HDGH President and CEO Bill Marra says in this case, there is a lot in a name.
Marra says 80 to 90 per cent of many referrals for the residential program come from outside Windsor-Essex.
“We thought it was a more fair representation; we are provincially funded through the Ministry of Health, and we are a provincial problem gambling program,” he says. “I think it will serve the community well and educate people a little bit better on how this accurately reflects the role in a trusted capacity across the province.”
Marra says they wanted to let people know this program exists to accurately reflect what they do because access to gambling has become so much easier and there is so much happening online.
“We see the fallout of it day in and day out. We see it with clients who present under very devastating circumstances. We see the impact that it’s having on families financially and emotionally. There are serious marital issues that are usually a fallout from these circumstances,” he says.
The Ontario Centre for Problem Gambling (OCPG) offers a full continuum of specialized services, including outpatient counselling and bed-based treatment services, serving individuals from communities all across Ontario.
The Ontario Centre for Problem Gambling is located at 1453 Prince Road in Windsor.