What Psychiatrists Can Do
APA's Task Force on Outpatient Forensic Services, in its report “Outpatient Services for the Mentally Ill Involved in the Criminal Justice System,” outlined four recommendations specific to psychiatry. The report is posted on APA's Web site at <www.psych.org/TFR200921>.
| •. | Commitment. To restore the psychiatric system to primacy in responding to problematic behavior, public-sector psychiatrists must embrace the mission of serving patients in the criminal justice system. Understanding the criminal justice system and instruction in management can be advanced through educational programs and conferences and in residency training programs. | ||||
| •. | Forensic leadership. Forensic psychiatry has made few inroads into outpatient public-sector psychiatry. Forensic psychiatric leadership in the outpatient sector is critical. | ||||
| •. | Enhancement of skills. Public-sector psychiatrists must acquire a number of skills as they take on the care and management of mentally disordered offenders. These include risk assessment and management, the therapeutic use of coercive interventions, management of antisocial personality disorders and comorbid substance abuse, and sophistication in spanning systems. Forensic psychiatrists can play a useful role in bringing these skills to the public sector. | ||||
| •. | Research. Little attention has been paid to services research related to mentally ill offenders. The task force recommends that funding agencies provide increased funding to support research to address identification of patients at risk for criminal justice involvement, the development of preventive interventions, and assessment of their effectiveness. The field can only advance with a more solid empirical basis for implementing interventions for mentally disordered offenders. | ||||
