Advancing Corrections Journal - Edition #9 - Management and Treatment of the Mentally Ill and Mentally Unwell in Corrections (ACJ9-A003)

Older adults with schizophrenia who are involved in the criminal justice system have unique circumstances around community re-entry. The purpose of this paper is to describe the impact of programs and services addressing symptom management and transition to community integration for people with schizophrenia that have a history of criminal justice involvement in the United States and are currently successfully living in the community. An exploratory secondary analysis of semi-structured individual interviews was conducted with 7 older adults (mean age 59, sd= 2.9, range 56-65) with schizophrenia. Qualitative data were collected and analyzed with content analysis. Seven participants discussed involvement with the criminal justice system and emphasized the importance of ongoing access to medications and therapy to help maintain symptom management. Housing, case management, and social services were indicated as promoting community integration. A recurrent theme was the need for continuity of services and engagement in supportive programs as a means to successful community re-entry and avoiding additional contact with the criminal justice system. Our results suggest that time unlimited access to medications and therapy, in addition to programs providing housing, case management, and social support have a positive impact on successful community re-entry for older adults with schizophrenia. Programs that provide time unlimited, integrated services to meet the specific needs of this vulnerable population may increase successful transition to re-entry, ameliorate recidivism, and benefit the community at large.

 

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