NCJ Number
188922
Journal
Crime & Delinquency Volume: 47 Issue: 3 Dated: July 2001 Pages: 446-461
Date Published
July 2001
Length
16 pages
Annotation
This article reviews effective services for parolees with mental illnesses.
Abstract
The article is divided into four major sections. The first describes the factors that have resulted in persons with serious mental illnesses (PSMIs) becoming a growing segment of the correctional population. The second explores the changing face of parole supervision and implications of those changes for the care of PSMIs on parole. Section three discusses the prevalence of mental illnesses among adult prisoners and probationers and draws inferences from those data regarding the parolee population. Section three also explores mental health care for prison inmates and special programs for PSMI's on probation and parole. The article concludes that the problems of parolees will always necessitate a team approach for interventions to be effective. Entire communities should assume responsibility for the care of mentally ill parolees by implementing neighborhood-based, integrated, and accountable networks of treatment, services, and support. These networks should be designed by all stakeholders involved in identifying and treating PSMIs on community corrections supervision: prison discharge staff, parole agents, mental health and drug treatment practitioners, and habilitation specialists who provide the mentally ill with housing and life skills training. References