Identifying potentially mentally ill inmates
Correctional facilities have offenders who are not experienced in prison life and therefore are prone to violence that is meted on them by inmates who have been convicted of violent crimes and have more experience in prison life (Sperry, 2016). Correctional officers must maintain a safe correctional environment for all inmates while identifying inmates who may have mental illnesses that may lead to violence and provide necessary assistance as required.
The process of identifying inmates who might be potentially suffering from mental illness may be difficult in prison set up given the limited funding accorded to correctional facilities as well as the possibility of some inmates pretending to be mentally ill (Sperry, 2016). Correction officers, however, when keen on the behaviour of inmates may be able to determine the mentally ill patients and the pretentious ones.
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To begin with, mental illness in correctional facilities may be manifest through tendencies of self-harm and suicide attempts. Studies have revealed that self-harm and suicide may be more common in inmates than community-based persons. Inmates inflicting self-harm may be at higher risks of having a mental illness in correctional facilities. Mentally ill inmates will tend to inflict self-harm which the inmates who are pretending may not do.
Another possible indicator of mental illness that correctional officers may use to differentiate between pretending inmates and potentially mentally ill is the tendency for violence as well as victimization. Continued research has shown a positive correlation between psychiatric disorders with violence. While prison violence is prevalent in many correctional facilities given the gang activities, mentally ill inmates will tend to be the object of prisoner-to-prisoner violence. In many cases, mentally ill inmates will be victims of violating prison rules while showing deviance, aggressiveness, and antisocial traits.
Inmates experience post-traumatic stress disorders will depict violence in numerous cases showing angry outburst with noticeable withdrawal symptoms such as failure to show interests in activities in addition to keeping away from events and places (Sperry, 2016). Another possible mental illness that inmates may suffer and can be identified from pretentious inmates is schizophrenia with schizophrenic inmates exhibiting lack of motivation, social withdrawal, and failure to appropriately express emotions. Inmates with bipolar disorder will show mood swing with instances of increased energy that may result in violence setting them different from the pretending inmates.
Approaches to handling mentally ill inmates
Responding to mentally ill inmates requires careful approaches given the possibility of unexpected reactions from victims. Approaching inmates who have bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or post-traumatic stress disorder requires more than providing mental health services given the confines of a cell block (Kratcoski, 2017). Adopting a psychological therapy where inmates are involved in pleasurable activities that tend to influence them and their environment may work to handle the mentally ill inmates. Group activities involving experience sharing for inmates may help alleviate cases of psychiatric disorders in correctional facilities. Through experience sharing activities mentally ill inmates realize that other individuals have similar experiences making it possible to have positive behavioral changes.
Training correctional officers
Correctional officers require appropriate training on handling mentally ill inmates in a way that does not compromise their safety riding on reasonable empathy. Correctional staff and officers should be trained in crisis intervention and crisis management strategies. In training, the need to resolve the crisis created by mentally ill inmates without causing conflict will ensure the safety of correctional officers (Pettid & Nebraska, 2016). A preparation before handling a crisis where the correctional officer gets the attention of the mentally ill inmate without drawing crowds to the victim coupled with attempts to create a rapport with the victim may enhance the handling process while ensuring safety.
Additionally, the correctional officers and staff need to have basic training on mental disorders to gain the ability to recognize symptoms of mental illness (Cornelius, 2017). Despite having a requirement to follow prison rules, mentally ill inmates often will not follow the regulations thus creating a need for a correctional officer to have a good understanding of different mental disorders.
References
Cornelius, G. F. (2017). The correctional officer: A practical guide .
Kratcoski, P. C. (2017). Correctional counseling and treatment .
Pettid, S. R., & Nebraska. (2016). Nebraska Department of Correctional Services culture study .
Sperry, L. (2016). Mental health and mental disorders: An encyclopedia of conditions, treatments, and well-being .
