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Oversight board hears sharp rise in serious mental‑illness rates and updates on substance‑use treatment
Summary
Board members flagged a rise in the percentage of people in custody identified with serious mental illness; Warden Williams and program staff described intake verification procedures, ongoing MAT treatment and training efforts, and staffing constraints cited by health services leaders.
Councilman Madden told the board that the percentage of people in custody identified with severe mental illness rose from 35% to 52% in two months and asked whether that could reflect changes in evaluation, intake, or access to community care.
Warden Williams said the facility conducts independent evaluations at intake and attempts medication verification with community treatment providers; he said the observed increases could reflect seasonal trends, changes in access to community care, or a higher incidence of comorbidities in people entering custody and that the board should continue to monitor the trend.
Williams provided substance‑use treatment numbers: 16 inductions to medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD) in the month, and 17.75% of the population (188 people) currently enrolled in some form of MOUD. He said most MOUD recipients are continuations of clinically approved community regimens upon intake.
Pat O'Connor, substance‑abuse and mental‑health administrator, described in‑custody treatment offerings and partner engagement: PREP 1 and PREP 2 (8‑ and 12‑week drug and alcohol education programs), anger management classes (different schedules for men and women), a 20‑week sex‑offender program (court ordered), CBT groups and community partner linkages for discharge planning. O'Connor said training and Narcan distribution are part of harm‑reduction work; she thanked the Delaware County Health Department and outside trainers who conducted Narcan sessions for staff and incarcerated people.
Board discussion noted staffing and resource limits. The county counsel and Executive Director O'Malley said additional clinical capacity would likely require increased funding; Health Services staffing changes were described as enabling a psychologist/nurse practitioner to shift toward clinical psychology work as more psychiatry coverage becomes available.
Ending: Board members asked staff to continue tracking the mental‑health trend, to provide more granular data on evaluations and grievances related to clinical care, and to consider resource requests if service demand outpaces current staffing.
