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Abstract: 

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2005, there were more than seven million adults under some type of correctional supervision, which includes probation, prison, jail, and parole (U.S. Department of Justice, 2007). Among the jail inmates, an estimated 64% had a mental health problem (James & Glaze, 2006). A study by Manderscheid et al. (2004) highlighted the disproportionate growth between the dramatic increase in the state adult correctional population and the meager growth of mental health services available in the system over the 12- year period from 1988 to 2000. Thus, the need for increased and innovative delivery of psychiatric services using the limited resources available in most correctional systems has become more critical. The deputies who are confronted with unusual behavior by the inmate with a psychiatric condition are the first to detect the consequences of delays in psychiatric attention and interrupted medications.

Keywords: San Diego County, multidisciplinary behavioral group, behavioral modification interventions, Mental Health Services Outcome Matrix, Outcome Measures

Affiliations:  1: Sheriff’s Department of the County of San Diego.