NCJ Number
117932
Journal
Psychiatric Annals Volume: 18 Issue: 12 Dated: (December 1988) Pages: 680-683
Date Published
1988
Length
4 pages
Annotation
This article points out that prison psychiatric facilities provide good opportunities for psychiatrists to develop the skills needed to practice criminal forensic psychiatry.
Abstract
Forensic psychiatry, a specialty that demands more knowledge and skill than general psychiatry, often includes the following branches: criminal behavior, mental disability, forensic psychiatry, and legal aspects of psychiatric practice. An excellent training ground for forensic psychiatry is forensic psychiatric work within the Federal prison system. Prison forensic psychiatrists serve as impartial experts to the court and conduct patient psychological evaluations in depth. The projected increases in the Federal prison population will call for increased numbers of prison forensic psychiatrists. The training of a resident doctor in prison forensic psychiatry is described. Even if those trained in prison forensic psychiatry do not practice in prisons, their experiences will give them a practical understanding of the relationship between deviant behavior and psychopathology. 8 references.