MENTALLY DISORDERED WOMEN IN JAIL - WHO RECEIVES SERVICES

Objectives. Many jail inmates have severe psychiatric disorders (e.g., schizophrenia, major affective disorders). The courts have mandated t hat detainees have a constitutional right to treatment. We investigate d what proportion of female jail detainees needed mental health servic es, what proportion received services, and what variables predicted wh o received services. Methods. Trained interviewers administered a psyc hiatric evaluation (the NIMH Diagnostic Interview Schedule) to 1272 ra ndomly selected female jail detainees during jail intake in a large Mi dwestern city. Project staff then documented whether women subsequentl y received services, using records and case files. Results. Of the wom en who needed services, 23.5% received them while they were in jail. T ype of disorder, treatment history, and sociodemographic variables all affected the odds of a mentally ill woman's receiving services. Concl usions. Correctional health care is a growing national public health p roblem. The magnitude of mental health service needs far exceeds curre nt resources.