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Adults with Behavioral Health Needs under Correctional Supervision
Case Example: Jim is a 44-year-old unemployed male who was convicted of forging checks. He is married, has two teenage children, and is active in his church. He tends to drink alcohol in the evenings to calm down but does not use drugs. He is distressed by his arrest and conviction, and he worries about paying his bills. His criminal activity was related to his recent inability to make mortgage payments and meet other financial obligations. He is remorseful for his criminal acts and has recently learned that he can return to work as a machinist with his former employer. Jim was released with time served and assigned to three years of probation with a restitution order.
Some of the interventions that Jim might receive include the following: • Jim will have periodic visits with his probation officer for the term of his supervision. • Jim may get assistance from local service groups to which he has been referred that provide supported employment (community-based services that can help Jim hold his job). • He may use other supportive services, such as financial counseling.
Goals for the Use of the Framework The scenarios presented above are meant to demonstrate how the framework can help state and local correctional administrators (institutional, probation, and parole) and state and community-based mental health and substance abuse agency leaders to plan and develop service responses that make efficient use of their scarce resources and perhaps build on evidence-based approaches by imagining new cross-agency responses. Although by itself the framework is not suitable for practitioners to use for clinical decision making, it is meant to facilitate clear and consistent communication among those committed to advancing the criminal justice and behavioral health systems.* It can help professionals in each system target the right individuals, promote responsible and effective practices, and better match system responses to service needs.
*It is also not meant to apply to youth in the juvenile justice system.