Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Jail Mental Health topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Durham jail mental health managers describe growing caseloads, therapeutic unit and limits of community bed capacity
Summary
Justice Services described rising mental‑health acuity among detainees, a Therapeutic Housing Unit for inmates with serious mental illness, 24‑hour coverage arrangements and frequent delays getting people to state psychiatric beds for involuntary commitment; staff urged more community housing, better data sharing and training for custody officers.
Justice Services and mental‑health staff briefed commissioners on May 28 about the county’s jail mental‑health program, rising case loads and the operational constraints that leave people waiting in custody for appropriate psychiatric placements.
Program structure and growth: Director Rashana Humphrey and clinical staff explained the program’s growth since 1997. The current staffing pattern includes a program manager, a behavioral health supervisor, three full‑time clinicians, a substance‑use counselor/case manager and six PRN clinicians, supplemented by a contract overnight telehealth vendor to provide 24‑hour coverage. The Therapeutic Housing Unit (THU) — a dedicated mental‑health pod created in 2017 — offers concentrated clinician contact, daily rounds and a safer setting for detainees with severe persistent mental illness.
Clinical operations and discharge planning: Justice Services said mental‑health clinicians screen detainees on intake, maintain a mental‑health caseload with at least monthly contacts for stabilized patients and coordinate closely with medical staff, psychiatry consultants (in‑person clinics two to 2.5 days per week), and the jail transitions program to provide bridge medications and warm handoffs to community providers. Dr. Patricia Canap (psychiatry) emphasized that long‑acting injectable antipsychotics can reduce treatment failure and recidivism but are costly; staff seek continuity for people discharged on injections.
System limitations: Staff described systemic constraints: limited state hospital beds, multi‑month waits for capacity restoration/safekeeping at regional psychiatric facilities, and custody understaffing that can block clinical access to pods. “We have an individual in the jail right now… who came in actively psychotic… we’ve been waiting for the bed for a while now,” staff said, describing repeated operational emergency measures and the routine nature of such waits. Commissioners discussed possible state‑level policy remedies and a potential jail‑based capacity restoration model the state is piloting in other counties.
Commissioner asks and next steps: Commissioners asked for details on training for custody officers, staffing needs, the feasibility of a jail‑based restoration program if the state requests it, and cultural/linguistic matching of clinicians for detainees. Justice Services said it will follow up on options for improved data sharing with community providers, expanded forensic community support teams and possible partnerships to increase housing and long‑term treatment options.
