Mental Health Action Plan For Federal Offenders

Overview

The Government of Canada is developing an Action Plan to ensure that the needs of the significant number of offenders with mental health needs are better met. This Mental Health Action Plan for Federal Offenders lays a foundation for a full Government response, anticipated in fall/winter 2014, to the recommendations of the Ontario Coroner's Jury into the death of Ashley Smith.

The Action Plan will continue to evolve as the Government progresses in its review and analysis of the Jury's recommendations.

The Government's Action Plan is focussed on five Pillars for Action:

1. Timely Assessment

Safe, gradual and successful community reintegration for offenders begins on day one of any sentence. The first step in understanding each offender's specific needs begins with an individualized assessment, including an intake assessment to assess and prioritize risk factors, and mental health screening to identify signs and symptoms associated with serious mental illness. From these comprehensive assessments, CSC is able to develop a Correctional Plan unique to the risk and health needs of every offender, men and women, young and old, to help guide the development of programs and other interventions, and an intervention strategy that includes necessary mental health programming, throughout an offender's sentence.

2. Effective Management

For CSC, Case Management and Institutional Supervision consists of the monitoring, intervention, assessment and documentation of inmates' progress during their sentence in meeting the objectives of their Correctional Plan. Institutional Parole Officers and Primary Workers are responsible for presenting recommendations to the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) regarding the conditional release and detention of offenders, following comprehensive risk assessments, based on ongoing correctional interventions and evaluations, with input provided by all members of the Case Management Team.

3. Sound Intervention

For more than a decade, the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) has developed research-based programs designed to reduce the likelihood of offenders committing new offences following release. These include correctional programs, education programs, and social programs, and the policies that provide the framework for the ongoing delivery and management of these programs. A commitment to sound intervention strategies ensures that offenders receive the right programs at the right time in their sentences and that correctional programs are offered to those who need them most on a priority basis.

From a mental health perspective, there are 3 types of intervention:

• Primary mental health care to address mental health needs of offenders within regular institutions;
• Intermediate mental health care for offenders with mental health problems, but which are not so severe as to require care in a psychiatric facility; and
• Facilitating admissions to a provincial health treatment centre for offenders with severe mental health needs.

4. Ongoing Training and Development

Every employee in the Correctional Service of Canada has a critical role to play in achieving the Service's mission and mandate. And that includes not only maintenance of essential training programs, but also continuous professional development of knowledge and skills that will facilitate improvement in both individual and organizational performance.

5. Robust Governance and Oversight

A robust governance structure is necessary to support and continually improve services provided to inmates, and to ensure that laws and policies are applied fairly and consistently. Strong governance and oversight tools also provide greater integration of all aspects of the management of offenders, including correctional operations, reintegration, physical health care and mental health care services.

Date modified:

2015-11-17