Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #111926

Jessica M. Pollard, MA, Psychology Department, University of Connecticut, 406 Babbidge Road, U1020, Storrs, CT 06269, (860) 297-0890, jessica.pollard@yale.edu, Linda Frisman, PhD, Connecticut Dept. Of Mental Health and Addiction Services, 410 Capitol Avenue, PO Box 341431, MS #14 RSD, Hartford, CT 06134, and Hsiu-Ju Lin, PhD, Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, 410 Capitol Avenue, MS # 14 RSD, Hartford, CT 06106.

Persons with mental illness are overrepresented in the criminal justice population and incarceration is associated with worsening of mental health symptoms. Diversion from jail and into treatment has emerged as a possible solution but little is known about the effectiveness of such programs. In particular, the potential for coercion is great and may impact treatment outcomes. This paper examines data from a quasi-experimental national jail diversion study of persons with co-occurring disorder (n=982) to determine relationships between person and program characteristics and outcomes. Participants from pre and post booking diversion programs were followed for one year. Preliminary analyses reveal that mental health symptom improvement can be predicted by a combination of person and program characteristics. Participants who did not experience coercion, with less severe baseline drug and alcohol abuse, not suffering from physical health problems, that obtained housing and had been suffering from mental illness a smaller proportion of their lives were significantly more likely to experience greater mental health symptom improvement. Compared to those who experienced coercion, participants who did not feel coerced in the areas of threat of incarceration, threat of hospitalization, and loss of parental rights, showed significantly greater mental health symptom improvement using hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) and controlling for baseline differences. Perceived coercion also predicted treatment attendance, with those experiencing coercion attending treatment less frequently. HLM confirmed that there was not a significant pattern to the missing data, meaning it did not systematically influence outcomes. Treatment implications and future directions will be discussed.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this session, participants will be able to

• Define various types of jail diversion programs.
• Articulate the influence that three types of coercion have on four treatment outcomes.
• Describe person and program characteristics that predict four treatment outcomes.

Keywords: Criminal Justice, Mental Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation