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Date: November 25, 2024 Mon

Time: 9:07 pm

Results for substance abuse (u.s.)

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Author: Feucht, Thomas E.

Title: Mental and Substance Use Disorders among Adult Men on Probation or Parole: Some Success against a Persistent Challenge

Summary: This report presents data on mental and substance use disorders among adult males on correctional supervised release–parole or probation–from local, state and federal prisons and jails. It examines issues that have grown increasingly salient with the rising costs associated with managing the growing community- and facility-based criminal justice population. Methods. Data were drawn from two key sources: (1) the Department of Justice's Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) data collected from probation and parole agencies for year-end reports, and (2) the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH). The NDSUH is an annual data set based on a national probability sample of the civilian noninstitutionalized population, conducted by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Changes over time in substance abuse and mental health measures among males aged 18 to 49 were studied by comparing 2009 estimates to estimates from each prior year (2002 to 2008). Estimates for probationers and parolees were compared with non-probationers and non-parolees based on several years of pooled NSDUH data. Results. The analysis reveals several significant findings. First, rates of substance dependence or abuse among probationers and parolees were found to be significantly lower than rates in prior years. Second, the percentage of parolees who reported receiving substance use treatment was significantly higher in 2009 than in 2005. Third, significantly lower percentages of probationers and parolees had an unmet need for substance use treatment in 2009 than in previous years. Overall, from 2002 to 2009, illegal drug use among people on probation and parole remained a persistent challenge, with rates of drug abuse and dependence remaining two to three times as high as rates among non-probationers and non- parolees. Similarly, rates of any mental illness, serious mental illness, serious psychological distress and depression during the past year were two to three times higher among probationers and parolees than among other respondents. The data also show a significant gap between need for treatment and the receipt of services. Probationers and parolees were more likely than others to have received some mental health services in the past year, but they were also more likely to report an unmet need for mental health services. In 2009, the percentages of probationers and parolees with mental disorders accessing services or reporting an unmet need for mental health services remained unchanged. Thus, while probationers and parolees report increasing access to substance use treatment and decreasing prevalence of substance abuse symptoms, important substance abuse/dependence and mental health problems persist. The mental health treatment gap among probationers and parolees has yet to be narrowed, let alone closed. These data have important implications for reducing the behavioral health treatment gap overall and for national efforts to improve effective community reentry for offenders with these disorders. Significant attention should be focused on the large numbers of adults on parole or probation who experience mental or substance use disorders, or both. Conclusions. The number of probationers and parolees with mental or substance use disorders whose treatment needs are not being met by community treatment and supportive services is significant. As a result, they are placed at greater risk for parole or probation failure leading to reincarceration. The findings suggest the ongoing need for broader implementation of effective treatment and reentry services for this high-risk, mostly nonviolent population, such as those provided under ongoing federal grant programs focused on reentering offenders. The ability to promote community reentry and reintegration for parolees and probationers with mental or substance use disorders requires a release plan that includes timely and readily accessible community-based treatment and appropriate support services.

Details: Rockville, MD: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2011. 16p.

Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 23, 2011 at: http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k11/NIJ_Data_Review/MentalDisorders.htm

Year: 2011

Country: United States

URL: http://oas.samhsa.gov/2k11/NIJ_Data_Review/MentalDisorders.htm

Shelf Number: 122881

Keywords:
Mental Health
Parolee
Parolees
Probation
Probationers
Substance Abuse (U.S.)
Substance Abuse Treatment