This book tackles the important issue of the effects of co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders on criminal offenders as they make the transition from incarceration back into society. It provides estimates of the prevalence of these disorders among criminal justice populations, and examines the various screening and assessment instruments used to diagnose co-occurring disorders. The volume further offers an inside look at an experimental community reentry program at a jail facility and uncovers how co-occurring disorders jeopardize the transition back into the community for offenders who suffer from them. It incorporates a historical account of the reentry issue to show how the current reentry problem is rooted in criminal justice policies dating back to the 1980s. As such, the text will be a valuable resource for criminal justice and criminology students, as well as practitioners in the corrections field, particularly those who work with inmates or released individuals with substance abuse and mental health disorders.

Public Health Behind Bars From Prisons to Communities examines the burden of illness in the growing prison population, and analyzes the impact on public health as prisoners are released. This book makes a timely case for correctional health care that is humane for those incarcerated and beneficial to the communities they reenter.

Over the past four decades, the rate of incarceration in the United States has skyrocketed to unprecedented heights, both historically and in comparison to that of other developed nations. At far higher rates than the general population, those in or entering U.S. jails and prisons are prone to many health problems. This is a problem not just for them, but also for the communities from which they come and to which, in nearly all cases, they will return. Health and Incarceration is the summary of a workshop jointly sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences(NAS) Committee on Law and Justice and the Institute of Medicine(IOM) Board on Health and Select Populations in December 2012. Academics, practitioners, state officials, and nongovernmental organization representatives from the fields of healthcare, prisoner advocacy, and corrections reviewed what is known about these health issues and what appear to be the best opportunities to improve healthcare for those who are now or will be incarcerated. The workshop was designed as a roundtable with brief presentations from 16 experts and time for group discussion. Health and Incarceration reviews what is known about the health of incarcerated individuals, the healthcare they receive, and effects of incarceration on public health. This report identifies opportunities to improve healthcare for these populations and provides a platform for visions of how the world of incarceration health can be a better place.

A research-to-practice text offering a biopsychosocial approach to treating criminal offenders Correctional Mental Health is a broad-based, balanced guide for students who are learning to treat criminal offenders in a correctional mental health practice. Featuring a wide selection of readings, this edited text offers a thorough grounding in theory, current research, professional practice, and clinical experience. It emphasizes a biopsychosocial approach to caring for the estimated 20% of all U.S. prisoners who have a serious mental disorder. Providing a balance between theoretical and practical perspectives throughout, the text also provides readers with a big-picture framework for assessing current correctional mental health and criminal justice issues, offering clear strategies for addressing these challenges.

Reentry planning for offenders with mental disorders.

This edited volume provides the first ever comprehensive, international and multi-disciplinary review of the evidence regarding substance use and harms in people who cycle through prisons and jails. Grounded in solid evidence and a human rights framework, the text provides a roadmap for evidence-based reform

Explores the challenges faced by convicted offenders over the course of rehabilitation and reintegration. Each chapter focuses on a specific phase of the process.