Currently, there are no mandatory standards of care for pregnant women in U.S. prisons and jails, and many incarcerated women receive inadequate obstetric care. These facts prompted Sufrin to study pregnancy outcomes in U.S. prisons through funding she received from NIH’s Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health Program.
This document is intended to assist community-based behavioral health providers in their clinical and case management practice with people with mental and substance use disorders who are currently involved with or have a history of involvement in the adult criminal justice system. The focus of this document is on services provided in the community rather than in institutional settings (i.e., jail, prison, or hospital). The information provided is intended to be used in practice, and is therefore appropriate for any staff providing direct services in community settings. However, to practice these principles, organizations may need to reconsider staff training, evidence-based practices, and other programmatic elements to ensure that staff providing direct services have the information, policy support, and resources needed. This document is also intended for agency leaders and program developers who are responsible for shaping how their organizations deliver community-based services. The Principles provide a foundation for realizing a quality, community-based behavioral health treatment system that is responsive to all individuals with mental and substance use disorders and skilled in serving those with histories of justice involvement.
Jails are on the front lines of this epidemic, and they also are in a unique position to initiate treatment in a controlled, safe environment. Pharmacotherapy—i.e., medication-assisted treatment—is a cornerstone of best practice for recovery from substance abuse. Treatment using MAT, particularly when coupled with evidence-based behavioral therapy, improves medical and mental health outcomes and reduces relapses and recidivism.
Outline of legal requirements of health care in the US penal system, including some court cases.
Women in rural jails are more likely to screen positive for a serious mental illness compared to men in rural jails and all individuals incarcerated in urban jails, according a study published this month in Criminal Justice and Behavior by researchers from Wayne State University.
An estimated 15% of the 1.8 million incarcerated individuals in the US have opioid use disorder (OUD).1,2 These individuals have a substantially higher risk of overdose after leaving correctional facilities.1 Pharmacotherapy for OUD is associated with reductions in postincarceration mortality, yet as of 2018, less than 14% of correctional systems offered buprenorphine or methadone.3 Over the past 5 years, more municipalities and states have enacted policies to provide access to OUD treatment, but the extent to which this implementation has actually increased buprenorphine use remains unclear.
Assessing an inmate’s risk for recidivism may become more challenging as the length of incarceration increases. Although the population of Long-Term Inmates (LTIs) is burgeoning, no risk assessment tools have been specifically validated for this group. Based on a sample of 1,144 inmates released in a state without parole, we examine the utility of the Level of Service Inventory-Revised (LSI-R) in assessing risk of general and violent felony recidivism for LTIs (n = 555). Results indicate that (a) the LSI-R moderately predicts general, but not necessarily violent, recidivism, and (b) this predictive utility is not moderated by LTI status, and is based in part on ostensibly dynamic risk factors. Implications for informing parole decision-making and risk management for LTIs are discussed.
With the population of adults under correctional supervision in the United States at an all-time high, psychologists and other professionals working in U.S. correctional agencies face mounting pressures to identify offenders at greater risk of recidivism and to guide treatment and supervision recommendations. Risk assessment instruments are increasingly being used to assist with these tasks; however, relatively little is known regarding the performance of these tools in U.S. correctional settings. In this review, we synthesize the findings of studies examining the predictive validity of assessments completed using instruments designed to predict general recidivism risk, including committing a new crime and violating conditions of probation or parole, among adult offenders in the United States. We searched for studies conducted in the United States and published between January 1970 and December 2012 in peer-reviewed journals, government reports, master’s theses, and doctoral dissertations using PsycINFO, the U.S. National Criminal Justice Reference Service Abstracts, and Google. We identified 53 studies (72 samples) conducted in U.S. correctional settings examining the predictive validity of 19 risk assessment instruments. The instruments varied widely in the number, type, and content of their items. For most instruments, predictive validity had been examined in 1 or 2 studies conducted in the United States that were published during the reference period. Only 2 studies reported on interrater reliability. No instrument emerged as producing the “most” reliable and valid risk assessments. Findings suggest the need for continued evaluation of the performance of instruments used to predict recidivism risk in U.S. correctional agencies.
This study summarizes the historical evolution of solitary confinement, recaps its linkages to self-injury and suicidality, and offers a theoretical framework grounded in ecosocial theory, and supplemented with concepts from theories of dehumanization and carceral geography.
The Guidelines for Managing Substance Withdrawal in Jails outlines the steps all jails (including detention, holding, and lockup facilities) should take to implement effective withdrawal management.