What next for adolescent forensic mental health research? (original) (raw)
Related papers
Adolescent offenders referred to a forensic psychiatric service: A three-year study
Psychiatric Bulletin, 1996
This paper describes the results of a survey of adolescent offenders referred to a tertiary National Health Service forensic psychiatric service based in South Wales over a three year period. Seventy-seven adolescents aged between 13 to 18 years were seen (5.1% of all referrals to the Service during this time). The majority of the adolescents had committed major offences including serious sexual crime, wounding and murder. A high rate of mental disorder was observed in this survey as well as high levels of substance misuse. Eighteen per cent were admitted to a hospital for further assessment and treatment.
The Journal of Forensic Practice
Purpose This paper provides an overview of transitions across forensic child and adolescent mental health services in England and Wales. The purpose of this paper is to delineate the national secure services system for young people in contact with the youth justice system. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews findings from the existing literature of transitions across forensic child and adolescent mental health services, drawing attention to present facilitators and barriers to optimal transition. The authors examine the infrastructure of current services and highlight gaps between child and adult service continuity and evaluate the impact of poor transitions on young offenders’ mental health and wellbeing. Findings Young offenders experience a broad range of difficulties, from the multiple interfaces with the legal system, untreated mental health problems, and poor transition to adult services. Barriers such as long waiting lists, lack of coordination between services and...
Journal of …, 2000
Penal, social services, special education and health agencies in one National Health Service Region were screened for severely troubled and troublesome young people in need of mental health services. One hundred and sixteen detailed assessments were undertaken on young people: 57 in``penal'' and 59 in``welfare'' establishments. Little difference was found between those in these two types of setting except that the``penal group'' were much more likely to have high levels of violent behaviour and to have had more changes of placement. The needs for mental health care greatly outstripped supply. As part of this overall neglect, 11 of 15 young people with serious mental illnesses and all 13 who had suffered sexual abuse in the sample were not receiving appropriate treatment. A tentative estimate of the size of the problem in the region yielded a rate of around 11?4 per million with very severe disorder but this is probably an under estimate. The effectiveness of treatment for the problems of these young people is discussed and a possible structure for a service is explored.
Mental health needs of young offenders in custody and in the community
British Journal of Psychiatry, 2006
BackgroundResearch has revealed high levels of mental health needs in young offenders but many studies have been small, focusing on specific populations.AimsTo evaluate the mental health and psychosocial needs of a nationally representative sample of juvenile offenders in England and Wales, including female offenders and those from Black and minority ethnic groups.MethodA cross-sectional survey of 301 young offenders, 151 in custody and 150 in the community, was conducted in six geographically representative areas across England and Wales. Each young person was interviewed to obtain demographic information, mental health and social needs, and psychometric data.ResultsYoung offenders were found to have high levels of needs in a number of different areas including mental health (31%), education/work (36%) and social relationships (48%). Young offenders in the community had significantly more needs than those in secure care and needs were often unmet. One in five young offenders was al...
BMJ Open, 2023
Objectives Among young offenders, psychiatric morbidity and comorbidity are common, but our knowledge about their use of mental health services during childhood and adolescence is scarce. We aimed to describe the lifelong use of mental health services of young offenders who have committed serious crimes. Design and study setting Using data on forensic psychiatric examinations of 42 Finnish offenders aged 15-22 years, we analysed the timing and typical patterns of their prior mental health service use with qualitative and quantitative content analysis and typification. Results Young offenders appeared in this study as children with plenty of perinatal and developmental risks, and risks related to their family situation and peer relations. Most subjects were described as having had emotional or behavioural symptoms, or both, since childhood. Involvement in mental health services was rare before the age of 7 years but increased markedly after that, staying on the same level during adolescence. Five categories of mental health service users were identified: (1) continuing service use around a decade (14.3%), (2) one brief fixed treatment (11.9%), (3) involuntary use of services (31.0%), (4) evasive use of services (21.4%) and (5) no mental health service use (21.4%). Conclusions Young offenders had symptoms from early ages, but during childhood and adolescence, involvement in mental health services appeared for most as relatively short, repetitive or lacking. To help children at risk of criminal development, a multiprofessional approach, an early evidence-based intervention for behavioural symptoms and screening for learning problems, traumatic experiences and substance use are necessary. Results can help identify children and adolescents with a risk of criminal development, to develop mental health services and to plan further research.
Medicine, Science and the Law, 2019
This study tracked young offenders transitioning from national adolescent forensic medium secure units to adult services in the UK within a six-month period. We used a mapping exercise to identify eligible participants moving during the study period from all national adolescent forensic medium secure units in England. Young people older than 17.5 years or those who had turned 18 years (transition boundary) and had been referred to adult and community services were included. Of the 34 patients identified, 53% moved to forensic adult inpatient services. Psychosis was the most prevalent symptom among males (29%), and emerging personality disorder symptomatology was commonly reported among females (18%) followed by learning disability (24%). The mean time for transition to adult mental-health services and community settings was eight months. There were no shared transition or discharge policies, and only two hospitals had discharge guidelines. The findings highlight the need for consist...