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                                    Resources
                                    Resources By Area of Practice
                                    Topics In Corrections
                                    People With Mental Health Conditions In Corrections

      

                    
          
    People with Mental Health Conditions in Corrections
People with mental health issues increasingly receive care provided by correctional agencies. In 1959, nearly 559,000 patients were housed in state mental hospitals (Lamb, 1998). A shift to "deinstitutionalize" people with mental health issues had, by the late 1990s, dropped the number of persons housed in public psychiatric hospitals to approximately 70,000 (CorrectCare, 1999). As a result, people with mental health issues are more likely to live in local communities. Some come into contact with the criminal justice system. In a 2006 Special Report, the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) estimated that 705,600 adults with mental health conditions were incarcerated in state prisons, 78,800 in federal prisons and 479,900 in local jails. In addition, research suggests that "people with mental illnesses are overrepresented in probation and parole populations at estimated rates ranging from two to four times the general population" (Prins and Draper, 2009). Growing numbers of offenders with mental health issues have strained correctional systems.

Special Publication: White Paper on Behavioral Health Needs

"Adults with Behavioral Health Needs under Correctional Supervision: A Shared Framework for Reducing Recidivism and Promoting Recovery" is a white paper prepared by the Council of State Governments Justice Center with support from, and in partnership with, the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). The framework is designed for state and local correctional administrators (institutional, probation, and parole) and community-based mental health and substance abuse agency leaders to plan and develop service responses that make efficient use of resources. Although by itself, it is not suitable for practitioners to use for clinical decision-making, or for decision-making regarding youth in the juvenile justice system, it is meant to facilitate clear and consistent communication among system administrators. It can help professionals in each system target the right individuals, ensure responsible and effective practices, and improve matches between responses to needs. The framework can help professionals in the criminal justice and behavioral health systems in the following ways:

Ensure that scarce resources are spent effectively.
	Advance collaboration and communication.
	Encourage responsible and effective practices.Available in the NIC Resources section of this page.

Evaluating Early Access to Medicaid as a Reentry Strategy

**Background:** Prison and jail inmates with physical health, mental health, and substance use problems experience more reintegration difficulties upon release, and they typically have poorer outcomes with respect to employment, re-offending, and re-incarceration. Maintaining treatment for these health problems may help improve post-release outcomes. Many inmates presently receive health care while incarcerated, but a lack of health insurance and other barriers contribute to declines in health treatment and functioning once released. Access to care through insurance coverage helps not only the individual, but it may also lower societal health care and criminal justice system expenditures by reducing costly emergency room visits, enabling individuals to work, and decreasing repeat criminal activity.

Project Purpose: This study, supported by the National Institute of Corrections and conducted by the Urban Institute, assessed whether currently available Medicaid coverage-for example, in states that cover childless adults under age 65-helps newly released inmates access health care and, thereby, contributes to improved employment and recidivism outcomes. Data collection and study findings on Medicaid effects may be found in Prison Inmates' Prerelease Application for Medicaid: Take-up Rates in Oregon.

A special thanks goes to Jefferson County Sheriff's Office for the photograph.

    Resource Links
          Autism and the Criminal Justice System: Policy Opportunities and Challenges (2022)
          Hot Topic: Do You Have Information on Crisis Intervention Teams? (2022)
          Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration - Mental Disorders (2022)
          National Institute of Mental Health (2022)
          Improving Case Processing and Outcomes for People with Behavioral Health Needs (2021)
          Does in-prison physical and mental health impact recidivism? (2020)
          Using Telehealth for Behavioral Health in the Criminal Justice System (2020)
          Hot Topic: Co-occurring Disorders in the Criminal Justice System (2016)
          Mental Health America
          Stepping Up Initiative
          National Alliance for the Mentally Ill
          National GAINS Center
                   NIC Resources
          Effects of COVID-19 on Prison Operations
          Adults with Behavioral Health Needs Under Correctional Supervision: A Shared Framework for Reducing Recidivism and Promoting Recovery
          Crisis Intervention Teams: An Effective Response to Mental Illness in Corrections [Satellite/Internet Broadcast]
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The Mentally Ill in Jail: Whose Problem Is It Anyway? [Satellite/Internet Broadcast]

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          Improving Outcomes for People with Mental Illnesses Under Community Corrections Supervision: A Guide to Research-Informed Policy and Practice
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Effective Prison Mental Health Services: Guidelines to Expand and Improve Treatment

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Topic Categories and Resources
The following grey bars are accordions that can be expanded to show a list of "top-shelf" resources that have been hand-picked by our library team around this topic. If you would like additional research assistance on this topic, please contact our help desk. They have access to specialized databases and thousands of resources you won't find online. Click on a grey box below to browse resources in that section.
            
      Accordion    Assessments
      
      In Focus: Implementing Mental Health Screening and Assessment (2018)
              Free, Brief, and Validated: Standardized Instruments for Low-Resource Mental Health Settings (2016)
              Accordion    Broadcasts, Videos, Webinars
      
      Price
              $0.00

CJCA Webinar: Mental Health Needs Among Youth Involved in Juvenile Justice

            
      
"This webinar will begin by reviewing research describing the prevalence of mental health disorders among juveniles in contact with the juvenile justice system.
      
  Accession Number
              031334

  Amount in Stock
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      Inmates with Mental Illness (2015)
              Mental Illness and Violent Events: Identifying, Managing and Reducing Risks (2016)
              Trauma-Informed Court Approaches for Mental Health Court Curriculum Trainers (2016)
              Diverting to Treatment: Community Policing and Supporting Youth with Mental Health Needs (2016)
              Accordion    Facility Design
      
      Prisons and the Mentally Ill: Why Design Matters (2017)
              Accordion    General
      
      Franklin County, Ohio: A County Justice and Behavioral Health Systems Improvement Project

            
      
"An extensive data analysis coupled with over 50 in-person interviews with local and state leaders led to the identification of key recommendations for reducing the number of people with behavioral health disorders cycling in and out of jail." Sections of this report include: background; summary of
              Envisioning the Next Generation of Behavioral Health and Criminal Justice Interventions

            
      
"The purpose of this paper is to cast a vision for the next generation of behavioral health and criminal justice interventions by presenting a set of empirically informed individual and environmental factors that directly and indirectly contribute to criminal justice involvement for individuals with
              Correctional Officers and the Incarcerated Mentally Ill: Responses to Psychiatric Illness in Prison

            
      
This is an excellent article explaining how the values and social structures of a U.S. prison affect a correctional officer's discretionary responses to situations involving mentally ill inmates. Sections of this article cover: prisons as local moral worlds and the construction of illness categories
              How Often and How Consistently do Symptoms Directly Precede Criminal Behavior Among Offenders With Mental Illness?

            
      
This article is one of the first to examine the relationship between criminal activity and the influence on it over time by mental illness. The authors discuss: how often mentally ill offenders commit crimes motivated by psychiatric symptoms; legal and research definitions of direct relationships
  
      Financially Sustaining Behavioral Health-Criminal Justice Programs (2021)
              Justice and Mental Health Collaboration Program Implementation Science Checklist Series (2020)
              Managing the Seriously Mentally Ill in Corrections (2019)
              Principles of Community-based Behavioral Health Services for Justice-involved Individuals: A Research-based Guide (2019)
              Practical Considerations Related to Release and Sentencing for Defendants Who Have Behavioral Health Needs: A Judicial Guide
              Treat or Repeat: A State Survey of Serious Mental Illness, Major Crimes and Community Treatment (2017)
              Predictive Analytics in Health Care and Criminal Justice: Three Case Studies (2015)
              Mental Health of Prisoners: Prevalence, Adverse Outcomes, and Interventions (2016)
              Publications and Resources on Mental and Substance Use Disorders
              Mental and Substance Use Disorders
              Accordion    In the News
      
      A Mental-Health Crisis in Alabama’s Prisons (July 2017)
              Accordion    Jails
      
      Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses in County Jails: A Survey of Jail Staff’s Perspectives (2016)
              Report and Recommendations Concerning Attica Correctional Facility’s Residential Mental Health Unit (2017)
              Reducing Mental Illness in Rural Jails (2016)
              Accordion    Juveniles
      
      Price
              $0.00

Diverting Youth at Probation Intake: The Front-End Diversion Initiative

            
      
This brief "discusses an effort in Texas to divert youth with suspected mental health needs away from juvenile justice processing. The Front-End Diversion Initiative (FEDI) uses specialized juvenile probation officers to link these youth and their families to community services and divert these

  Amount in Stock
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              From Recidivism to Recovery: The Case for Peer Support in Texas Correctional Facilities

            
      
"In this paper, we [the authors] explore the use of mental health peer support services as one way to support recovery, improve continuity of care, and reduce recidivism for inmates with mental illness during the re-entry process. We present a successful peer support re-entry program model
              Accordion    Pretrial
      
      First-Episode Incarceration: Creating a Recovery-Informed Framework for Integrated Mental Health and Criminal Justice Responses

            
      
"This report, modeled on promising approaches in the mental health field to people experiencing a first episode of psychosis, outlines a new integrated framework that encourages the mental health and criminal justice fields to collaborate on developing programs based on early intervention, an
              Improving Responses to People with Mental Illnesses at the Pretrial Stage: Essential Elements

            
      
"This report introduces essential elements for responding to people with mental illnesses at the pretrial stage, including decisions about pretrial release and diversion. These elements encourage data collection not only to help individual communities, but also for future researchers who are
  
      Emptying the 'New Asylums': A Beds Capacity Model to Reduce Mental Illness Behind Bars (2017)
              Accordion    Reentry
      
      Guidelines for Successful Transition of People with Mental or Substance Use Disorders from Jail and Prison: Implementation Guide (2017)
              Accordion    Restrictive Housing
      
      Reducing Homelessness for People with Behavioral Health Needs Leaving Prisons and Jails (2021)
              Exploring the Causes and Consequences of Restrictive Housing in America’s Prisons and Jails (2020)
              Alternative Housing and Mentally Ill Inmates: An Essential Need (2017)
              Review of the Federal Bureau of Prisons’ Use of Restrictive Housing for Inmates with Mental Illness (July 2017)
              Accordion    Technology
      
      Innovative Uses of Technology to Address the Needs of Justice-Involved Persons with Behavioral Health Issues (2016)
              Accordion    Treatment
      
      The Processing and Treatment of Mentally Ill Persons in the Criminal Justice System: A Scan of Practice and Background Analysis

            
      
This "background analysis examines how individuals with mental illness are processed and treated in the criminal justice system and discusses the implications of insufficient or inadequate care for these individuals. In particular, the main objectives of this paper are to review current practice in
              TIP 59: Improving Cultural Competence

            
      
"The development of culturally responsive clinical skills is vital to the effectiveness of behavioral health services. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), cultural competence “refers to the ability to honor and respect the beliefs, languages, interpersonal styles
              Interventions for Adult Offenders With Serious Mental Illness

            
      
This report is a great introduction to strategies for treating offenders with serious mental illness (i.e., schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, or major depression) in jails, prisons, forensic hospitals, or community reentry programs. The researchers “identified some promising
              The Treatment of Persons with Mental Illness in Prisons and Jails: A State Survey

            
      
“Prisons and jails have become America’s “new asylums”: The number of individuals with serious mental illness in prisons and jails now exceeds the number in state psychiatric hospitals tenfold. Most of the mentally ill individuals in prisons and jails would have been treated in the state psychiatric
              Price
              $0.00

Effective Prison Mental Health Services: Guidelines to Expand and Improve Treatment

            
      
"[H]istorical , legal, and ethical issues relevant to dealing with mental illness in the field of corrections" are discussed (p. iii). Chapters include: introduction; screening and assessment; mental health and substance abuse treatment; use of seclusion, segregation, and restraints; suicide

  Amount in Stock
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      Improving Responses to People Who Have Co-occurring Mental Illnesses and Substance Use Disorders in Jails (2020)
              Massachusetts Community Justice Workshop Report (2016)
              All Studies on Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) in Multiple States and in Counties of Different Size Show it Works (2015)
              Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs) Resources
              The Use and Impact of Correctional Programming for Inmates on Pre- and Post-Release Outcomes (2017)
  
      How Many Incarcerated Individuals Received Psychotropic Medication in California Jails: 2012­ - 2017

Contacts for this content
          Dena M. Owens, Psy.D.
      
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              Correctional Program Specialist

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              Prisons Division

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              National Institute of Corrections

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              202-305-4080
          Sandora Cathcart
      
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              Correctional Program Specialist

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              Jails Division

  Agency / Business / Organization
              National Institute of Corrections

  Phone
              202-616-9590
          NIC Information Center
      
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              National Institute of Corrections

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