Road To Recovery

The GAINS Center estimates approximately 1.1 million persons with serious mental illness are admitted annually to U.S. jails. Among these admissions, 72 percent also meet criteria for co-occurring substance use disorder. Rates of substance use disorders among prisoners are more than four times that of the general population, and 15 percent of male and 30 percent of female inmates recently admitted to jail have a serious mental illness. This show explores what services are critical to include in justice intervention, namely: treatment and recovery efforts for people in criminal and juvenile justice systems with mental and substance use disorders; family involvement; recovery support; peer counseling by people who have successfully completed drug court; problem solving court programs; and, education and training for those returning home. Panelists discuss new programs to help people before incarceration, interventions for at-risk populations, and how to improve the juvenile justice system to ensure the provision of appropriate support.