Research Article
No access
Published Online: 1 October 2006

Older Mentally Ill Inmates: A Descriptive Study

Publication: Journal of Correctional Health Care
Volume 12, Issue Number 4

Abstract

This article describes the mentally ill inmate population aged 50 years and older at the Utah State Prison and addresses related financial and policy issues. Prevalence of serious mental illness was 13.6% versus 15.5% among younger inmates. Of the older mentally ill inmates, 57% had a primary diagnosis of depression, 25% schizophrenia, and 18% bipolar disorder. Schizophrenia spectrum disorders were seen in 3% of the older population, exceeding the incidence in seniors in the community. The rate of atypical antipsychotic medication use in older mentally ill inmates was 33% versus 23% for younger inmates. The majority of older mentally ill inmates required sheltered or specialized mental health housing. These findings suggest future challenges to prison administrators as Utah’s aging inmate population increases. Near term, however, the impact will not be marked because older mentally ill inmates represented less than 1% of the population, and Utah’s sentencing structure allows for a balance between older inmate intakes and releases.

Get full access to this article

View all available purchase options and get full access to this article.

References

Adams, D. B., & Reynolds, L. E. (2002). Bureau of Justice Statistics 2002: At a glance (Bureau of Justice Statistics Report NCJ 194449). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.
Cohen, C. I. (2000). Practical geriatrics: Directions for research and policy on schizophrenia and older adults: Summary of the GAP committee report. Psychiatric Services, 51, 299-302.
Correctional Medical Authority. (2000). Annual report of the CMA—Incarcerating elderly and aging inmates: Medical and mental health implications. Tallahassee, FL: Author.
Ditton, P. M. (1999). Mental health and treatment of inmates and prisoners (Bureau of Justice Statistics Special Report). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.
Fazel, S., Hope, T., O’Donnell, I., & Jacoby, R. (2004). Unmet treatment needs of older prisoners: A primary care survey. Age and Ageing, 33, 396-398.
Florida House of Representatives, Criminal Justice & Corrections Council, Committee on Corrections. (1999). An examination of elder inmates services: An aging crisis. Tallahassee, FL: Author.
Harrison, P. M., & Beck, A. J. (2004). Prisoners in 2003 (Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin NCJ 205335). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice.
Kinsella, C. (2004). Trends alert: Corrections health care costs. Lexington, KY: Council of State Governments.
National Institute of Mental Health. (2006). The numbers count: Mental disorders in America (Fact Sheet, NIH Publication No. 06-4584, Rev. ed.). Retrieved from www.nimh.nih.gov/publicat/numbers.cfm
Owens, B., & Phillips, N. (2003). Georgia aging inmate population: An analysis of historic trends and projection of the future population. Atlanta: Office of Planning and Analysis, Georgia Department of Corrections.
Public Health Agency of Canada. (2002). A report on mental illnesses in Canada. Ottawa, Canada: Author. Retrieved from http://www.phac-aspc.gc.ca/publicat/miic-mmac/
Regan, J. J., Alderson, A., & Regan, W. M. (2002). Psychiatric disorders in aging prisoners. Clinical Gerontologist, 26, 117-124.
U. S. Department of Health and Human Services. (1999). Mental health: A report of the surgeon general. Rockville, MD: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Mental Health Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Mental Health. Retrieved from http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/mentalhealth

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

cover image Journal of Correctional Health Care
Journal of Correctional Health Care
Volume 12Issue Number 4October 2006
Pages: 262 - 268

History

Published in print: October 2006
Published online: 1 October 2006

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Topics

Authors

Affiliations

Steven J. Caverley [email protected]
Bureau of Clinical Services, Utah Department of Corrections, Draper

Notes

Address correspondence to: Steven J. Caverley, LCSW, Bureau of Clinical Services, Utah Department of Corrections, P.O. Box 250, Draper, UT 84020. [email protected]

Metrics & Citations

Metrics

Citations

Export citation

Select the format you want to export the citations of this publication.

View Options

Get Access

Access content

To read the fulltext, please use one of the options below to sign in or purchase access.

Society Access

If you are a member of a society that has access to this content please log in via your society website and then return to this publication.

Restore your content access

Enter your email address to restore your content access:

Note: This functionality works only for purchases done as a guest. If you already have an account, log in to access the content to which you are entitled.

View options

PDF/EPUB

View PDF/ePub

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Copy the content Link

Share on social media

Back to Top