ONE-YEAR OUTCOMES OF A RANDOMIZED TRIAL OF CASE-MANAGEMENT WITH SERIOUSLY MENTALLY-ILL CLIENTS LEAVING JAIL

It was hypothesized that clients receiving case management services wi ll improve to a moderate extent in terms of a variety of psychosocial and clinical outcomes compared with clients served by the usual system of care. It was further hypothesized that clients served by an Assert ive Community Treatment (ACT) team will have significantly greater imp rovement than clients served by forensic case managers working individ ually. Two hundred seriously mentally ill inmates leaving jail were as signed to three conditions, and 94 remained in the study at I year. On e-year outcomes were analyzed by service condition, using a hierarchic al block discriminant function analysis Contrary to the hypothesis mor e clients in the experimental condition returned to jail within a year No differences were found among the three conditions in social or cli nical outcomes. Greater jail recidivism among clients receiving the mo re intensive service raises questions concerning tendencies to emphasi ze monitoring with this population.