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Assertive Community Treatment: A Reentry Model for Seriously Mentally Ill Offenders

NCJ Number
207502
Author(s)
Katherine A. Brown Ph.D.
Date Published
June 2004
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article briefly describes the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) program used as a new approach to transitioning mentally ill-prison inmates back into the community.
Abstract
Within the Ohio State prison system, 9.5 percent of the inmate population has a serious mental illness. The Assertive Community Treatment program is a plan for comprehensive community-based mental health treatment. ACT was established for individuals with severe illnesses who have frequent relapses and hospitalizations and/or find it difficult to maintain recovery treatment activities. The ACT program strongly encourages family involvement. Twenty years of research have demonstrated that the ACT model is more effective than traditional intervention in reducing days spent in hospitals and in promoting improved clinical stability, independent living, and client satisfaction. In 2002, grants were awarded by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction’s (ODRC) Division of Parole and Community Services to the Hamilton and Cuyahoga County Mental Health Boards to establish ACT teams for serious mentally ill offenders being released from prison. To date, a total of 50 offenders have participated in the pilot projects. Formal outcome studies are currently underway with preliminary data indicating a decreased usage of jail, prison, and psychiatric beds. Funding was secured for 2004 for both pilot projects.