Abstract
Background: The recent UK Government strategy on high-risk offenders with personality disorders (PD) proposes improved identification of this group, assessment of their treatment needs through case formulation (CF) and the subsequent provision of treatment pathways. Little is known about service user and carer views on this strategy. Aims/Hypotheses: This study sought to identify the views of personality-disordered (PD) offenders and carers on the proposed role of Probation staff in CF. Methods: Three focus groups were carried out, two with service users and one with carers, with a total of 10 participants overall. Results: Five themes emerged: ‘power’, ‘conflicting roles’, ‘trust’, ‘building a relationship through consistency of care’ and ‘hope and possibility’. Conclusions/Practical implications: Offenders and carers were sceptical regarding the proposed role of Offender Manager (OMs) in CF and this could pose a potential barrier to the successful implementation of the strategy.
Highlights
The recent UK Government strategy relating to personality-disordered (PD) offenders – the Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) pathway – heralds a shift in the management of offenders who are deemed as posing a high risk of high harm to others (Department of Health, 2011; Joseph & Benefield, 2010)
The strategy involves joint working between the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) and the National Health Service (NHS) allowing Offender Manager (OM) to be supported in this new task (i.e. case formulation (CF)) by suitably qualified psychologists
Whilst the ethical clearance procedure had approved the use of focus groups within this setting, access was not granted by gatekeepers who felt that a focus group was inappropriate for that setting at that particular time; this was due to a recent incident within the setting that caused distress to clients and created a heightened sense of tension
Summary
The recent UK Government strategy relating to personality-disordered (PD) offenders – the Offender Personality Disorder (OPD) pathway – heralds a shift in the management of offenders who are deemed as posing a high risk of high harm to others (Department of Health, 2011; Joseph & Benefield, 2010). The OPD pathway involves the early identification of these offenders (including through a PD Screen in the electronic Offender Assessment System, OASys) and the subsequent provision of a case formulation (CF) by the Offender Manager (OM)1 – in consultation with a psychologist – in order to develop a pathway plan. A core element of the OPD strategy includes providing staff within the Probation Service with training to carry out CF, so that once high risk high harm PD offenders have been identified, their treatment needs can be swiftly assessed, with subsequent direction towards treatment. The recent UK Government strategy on high-risk offenders with personality disorders (PD) proposes improved identification of this group, assessment of their treatment needs through case formulation (CF) and the subsequent provision of treatment pathways. Conclusions/Practical implications: Offenders and carers were sceptical regarding the proposed role of Offender Manager (OMs) in CF and this could pose a potential barrier to the successful implementation of the strategy
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