The Young Gamers & Gamblers Education Trust has revealed the newest addition to their team following the appointment of Dr Ali Lutte-Elliott, who will be leading the Mindful Resilience programme, recently announced by the charity.
YGAM is leading an alliance of experts to introduce a purposeful new initiative to deliver specialist training on gambling, gaming, and digital behavioural addictions to healthcare professionals. By providing free-to-access training workshops and resources specifically tailored to the needs of health professionals, the programme aims to support the vision of the charity to safeguard all children and young people from gaming and gambling related harms.
Dr Lutte-Elliott grew up in West Sussex and studied Psychology, completing her doctorate at the University of Surrey. She has a wide range of experience working in the NHS and various health settings. She has already made exciting progress on the programme she is passionate about seeing delivered. Talking about her new role at the charity, Dr Lutte-Elliott said: “Since joining the team at YGAM, I have seen first-hand the commitment and dedication of the entire organisation. Children and young people are growing up in a vastly different world today than other generations have previously. We must equip healthcare professionals in support roles to develop their knowledge and skills to understand and be able to assess for gaming and gambling related harms. It is vital that professionals can engage with young people in this process of discovery and know what support is available to them.”
Commenting on what the Mindful Resilience programme means to her, Dr Lutte-Elliott said: “By providing a solid foundation of knowledge and offering ways that professionals can helpfully intervene without necessarily having to be experts in the area, our aim is to reach all those young people who may benefit from additional support. I am keen to engage with a wide range of experts who are already doing great work in this area, so that we can share expertise, resources, and best practise. I believe the Mindful Resilience programme will provide a crucial opportunity to raise the profile of gaming and gambling related harm within the health care sector.”
Speaking about Dr Lutte-Elliott’s appointment, YGAM CEO and Founder Lee Willows said: “Having Ali on board is a huge step forward for our organisation and for those partner organisations invested in delivering the Mindful Resilience programme. In my many conversations with Ali, she has constantly demonstrated how her knowledge and professional expertise will be an huge asset to the important overall objective of Mindful Resilience. I am very excited to see the work she comes up with and I know that the programme is in safe hands with her at the helm.”
Dr Sarah Hodge from Bournemouth University is working closely with YGAM on the research aspect of the programme. She has already started working with Dr Lutte-Elliott and spoke about the continuing partnership: “I’m very much looking forward to collaborating on the project with Ali and bringing together perspectives from academia and professional practice to support the training of gaming and gambling related harms in young people.”
