The National Institute of Justice (NIJ) and the Priority Criminal Justice Needs Initiative convened an expert workshop to identify the challenges with managing individuals with serious mental illness under correctional control. RAND Corporation and the University of Denver (DU) brought together 15 experts of prison, jail, probation, parole administrators; researchers; and mental health care professionals to research the issues related to the treatment and management of individuals with SMI under correctional control. Participants completed a pre-workshop questionnaire on significant areas of significance to assess the priority of each topic.

The topics discussed were community-based treatment services, policing and public safety, specialty courts and jail diversion, institutional programming, reentry coordination, relapse prevention, and data-driven accountability. Recommendation from the workshop groups are as followed: More-focused efforts, perhaps in collaboration with diverse groups including the justice system, might help increase awareness and spark a shift in public attitudes about mental illness and those who suffer from it, greater emphasis on life-skills development in early childhood might prepare individuals to handle the day-to-day challenges that can be overwhelming to the mentally ill, Models are needed to help communities determine the levels of mental health care (inpatient and outpatient) and supportive services needed to meet demand, Diverting lower risk individuals from jails and prisons into community-based services that can meet their individual needs can achieve better outcomes at lower costs and without compromising public safety.

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^{Keywords: National, Research, Focus Group, Mental Illness, Correctional Facilities, National Institute of Justice (NIJ), 2019, Recommendations}

• Mental Illness