Abstract
BackgroundTransition from prison to community is a challenging time for all people who have been incarcerated. It is particularly challenging for those also living with serious and persistent mental illness. This study explored staff experiences and perspectives of what helped and hindered them in their work to support that transition.MethodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 mental health staff working across three service sectors directly engaged in the process of supporting people with mental illness transitioning from prison to community; the forensic mental health provider Justice Health, Community Mental Health and a non-government delivered community-based service called Partners in Recovery. Data were analysed using constant comparative analysis.ResultsFive main themes were identified through the analysis. All five themes were key practices that, when occurring, supported staff to work in a way that they felt would maximise positive outcomes for people transitioning from prison to community. These included: housing secured before release; clearly defined and effective communication pathways; shared understanding of systems and roles; in-reach and continuity of contact, and consumers’ pre-release preparation and knowledge. All staff participants described barriers to good transition to community outcomes when some or all of these practices could not, or did not, occur.ConclusionsStaff experiences highlight the complexity but importance of getting multi-sectorial partnerships and practices right for good prison to community transitions for people living with serious and persistent mental illness. Currently fragmented and disparate systems and practices need to align and clear expectations and understandings need to be shared across the whole. These changes, along with prioritised housing are likely to lead to better long-term outcomes for people.
Highlights
Transition from prison to community is a challenging time for all people who have been incarcerated
Released prisoners living with a severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI) are more likely than their peers to be homeless, unemployed, living with other former prisoners or current drug users, experiencing drug and or alcohol misuse issues, and more likely to receive less support from family members when compared to recently released prisoners without mental illness [1, 6,7,8,9]
This paper reports on staff perspectives on what currently helps or hinders them to successfully support people living with SPMI to transition from prison to community
Summary
Transition from prison to community is a challenging time for all people who have been incarcerated. Released prisoners living with a SPMI are more likely than their peers to be homeless, unemployed, living with other former prisoners or current drug users, experiencing drug and or alcohol misuse issues, and more likely to receive less support from family members when compared to recently released prisoners without mental illness [1, 6,7,8,9]. They were at a much higher risk of suicide [6]. Longitudinal Australian data evidences significantly increased rates of poor longer term outcomes for released prisoners with a self-reported mental illness diagnosis across a multitude of social and health domains, even after adjustment for pre-existing disadvantage [10]
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