USJ’s Faculty of Health Sciences Provides Consultancy for SKH’s Research on Gambling Disorders and Family Members
USJ's Faculty of Health Sciences Provides Consultancy for SKH's Research on Gambling Disorders and Family Members
08
Aug
08/08/2023
By combining academic expertise with real-life experiences, the partnership between USJ’s Faculty of Health Sciences and Sheng Kung Hui Macau Social Services Coordination Office’s (SKH) 24-hour Gambling Counseling Hotline and Online Counseling Unit aims to make a positive and lasting impact on the Macao community.
The Faculty of Health Sciences (FHS) at the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) has signed a service agreement with the Sheng Kung Hui Macau Social Services Coordination Office’s (SKH) 24-hour Gambling Counseling Hotline and Online Counseling Unit to provide consultancy on a qualitative research study focused on family members of individuals with gambling disorders. This research is led by Dr. Edward Kwan from the Department of Psychology at FHS, and a team of USJ’s Master of Counselling and Psychotherapy and Doctoral students that will collaborate closely with SKH’s 24-hour Counseling Unit to conduct semi-structured interviews and collect data aimed at improving services for the Macao community.
The project is an extension of SKH’s completion of a quantitative research study on issues related to problem gamblers and will continue its service-oriented research with a qualitative study on the family members.
The progress of the project has been significant, with the first phase, which included consultancy by Prof. Vitor Santos Teixeira from the Department of Psychology at USJ, and the “Part One of Training on Basic of Qualitative Research” conducted by Dr. Edward Kwan and the USJ Consultancy Team, successfully completed on 16 June 2023. Pilot interviews were also conducted and a debriefing session on the pilot results was completed on 4 August 2023. The second phase of consultancy services and the “Part Two Training on Qualitative Data Analysis” is scheduled to take place in early September 2023.
The collaboration between USJ and SKH represents a significant step forward in addressing gambling disorders and supporting affected family members in Macao. Both institutions are committed to leveraging this research to improve and provide new insights for effective service models to support individuals and families affected by gambling disorders.
USJ Team providing qualitative research training to SKH’s frontline staff members
Group photo of SKH Macau counsellors and USJ Team with Dr. Edward Kwan
Master of Counselling and Psychotherapy student delivering a workshop to SKH’s staff members
