A model for the provision of jail mental health services: an integrative, community-based approach

Although a considerable amount of attention has been paid to the development and implementation of mental health services in prisons, relatively little work has focused on the provision of such services to jails. Jails generally serve two purposes: (1) they hold inmates awaiting arraignment or trial and (2) they serve as short-term correctional facilities for individuals who have been assigned relatively short sentences (no longer than one or two years). Because inmnates in the first category usually remain in jail for a short period of time, it is particularly challenging to provide them mental health services. This article describes an innovative program that has recently been developed for assessing the mental health needs of inmates awaiting arraignment or trial, and providing them with mental health services.