Therapeutic ‘Making Changes’ pilot in Whatcom County jail showed short‑term drops in anxiety and depression scores, presenters say

Lifeline Connections and Whatcom County corrections staff described a six‑week voluntary therapeutic community pilot that officials say produced measurable improvements in anxiety and depression scores and strong participant feedback.

At the Jan.16 Justice Project Oversight and Planning Committee meeting, Hannah Sloan, clinical program director with Lifeline Connections, presented findings from the “Making Changes” pilot that ran October–November 2024 inside a work‑center pod. “The program is a voluntary therapeutic community and group therapy program intended to educate and rehabilitate incarcerated adults,” Sloan said.

Why it matters: The county has not previously operated multi‑week therapeutic pods inside the jail system. County and nonprofit staff framed the pilot as a proof of concept for in‑custody programming that pairs clinical groups with a therapeutic living environment and reentry planning.

Pilot structure and eligibility

The pilot housed six men together in a single pod with 4 group sessions per week (two mental‑health groups, one reentry group and one peer‑led group) and one individual session per week; group sessions were about two hours and individual sessions 30–60 minutes. Sessions were facilitated by two Behavioral Health and Reentry Services (BHRS) staff; roles included a mental‑health clinician, a reentry specialist and a peer specialist. Sloan said the physical pod was repainted and furnished with new seating and a donated mural to create a less “sterile” environment.

Eligibility required a diagnosed mental‑health condition, psychiatric stability, expected custody for the program duration and willingness to participate and live in a group setting. Of six initial participants one was removed for interpersonal concerns; five completed the full program.

Measured outcomes

Sloan presented pre‑ and post‑program self‑report measures. For the GAD‑7 (anxiety) three of five completers recorded a 14‑point reduction, moving from “severe” to “mild or minimal” anxiety categories; one moved from moderate to mild and one had a small increase within measurement noise. For the PHQ‑9 (depression) the same three participants showed reductions of 11 to 17 points, shifting from moderately severe/severe to minimal or moderate scores. Sloan characterized those changes as significant for a six‑week intervention.

Participant feedback collected in open‑ended responses was strongly positive: “I’ve gotten close with my peers. We’re like a family now,” one participant wrote. Sloan said several participants expressed interest in continued treatment in custody and in outpatient services after release, and some sought inpatient substance‑use treatment.

Program next steps and limits

Sloan said the team plans to run another session in March, ideally with women if space permits, and to explore adapting the model for populations with psychosis or other presentations that require tailored approaches. The pilot used screening instruments to assess group readiness and tracked symptom measures, but Sloan and committee members acknowledged that longer follow‑up is necessary to measure recidivism or sustained outcomes after release.

Community partnerships and staffing

Sloan and corrections staff discussed expanding programming by inviting community partners (public defender, mental‑health court representatives, vocational programs, and local nonprofits) to provide classes or volunteer groups inside the therapeutic pods. Lifeline held the current contract for in‑jail behavioral health services, which enabled implementation without immediate billing concerns. Lake Whatcom Center’s HEART program (SAMHSA funded) was cited as an example of a partner that already provides services without billing barriers.

Committee members said facility space will limit program scale under current conditions and that a future facility should include dedicated program space to enable expansions. Sloan thanked jail staff, including Sergeant Freeman, for support and noted the mural and furniture donations that helped create a more therapeutic setting.

Sloan closed by noting that the pilot is one of the first of its kind in Washington state, and that staff intend to continue weekly follow‑up sessions for the initial cohort while planning a larger rollout if resources and space permit.