Abstract
The prison population in the United States has grown steadily in the past 15 years. Farview State Hospital in Waymart, Pennsylvania annually provides service to approximately 350 to 400 inmates. This is less than 10 percent of the potential need for psychiatric treatment for the state. Emergency psychiatric admissions are a burden on the mental health system, as these inmates are given priority. This descriptive study identified profiles of emergency admissions for the period of July 1, 1990 to June 30, 1993. During this time, 86 emergency admissions occurred. Differences between state correctional and local county prison inmate admissions are described. The short stays of emergency admissions indicate that Farview is achieving its goal of stabilization of the mentally disordered inmate for return to the correctional facility. More research needs to be done to compare emergency and regular admissions for both diagnosis and length of stay.
Footnotes
-
Ms. Fox is the Director of Social Services at Farview State Hospital, Waymart, PA. Dr. Ruby is a staff psychologist at Farview; Dr. Siska is Assistant Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Marywood College, Scranton, PA; Dr. Singer is Dean, School of Social Work, Marywood College.
- Copyright © 1996, The American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law
