People who want to reduce or stop gambling can enrol in self-exclusion programmes. These programmes bar people from gambling in online and/or land-based venues. Spelpaus is a national self-exclusion programme available in Sweden. Spelpaus allows people to self-exclude from all licensed online and land-based gambling operators in Sweden. The authors of this study were interested in the participation rate of Spelpaus among people seeking treatment for gambling disorder. They also wanted to know how many people enrolled in Spelpaus still gambled despite their self-exclusion.
The authors reviewed hospital charts from a gambling treatment facility in southern Sweden. A total of 85 patients applied for treatment from January 1 to September 1, 2021. Amongst them, 74 patients attended at least one appointment and had full data available in their health records. The authors found that 81% of these patients had enrolled in Spelpaus. Notably, 68% still gambled while participating in Spelpaus. Most were able to do so via unlicensed gambling operators (68%) or by using someone else’s ID (22%).
