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Kassam A, Beder M, Sediqzadah S, Levy M, Ritts M, Maher J, Kirwan N, Law S. Impact of COVID-19 on the lives of people with severe mental illness-front-line community psychiatry workers observation from a provincial survey of assertive community treatment teams in Ontario, Canada. Int J Ment Health Syst 2023; 17:18. [PMID: 37328776 DOI: 10.1186/s13033-023-00585-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Using an online survey distributed to members of the provincial organization that represents the 88 Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) and Flexible ACT teams in Ontario, Canada, this descriptive study relied on the unique vantage points and observations of the front-line community psychiatry workers who maintained contact with patients through outreach and telecommunication during the height of COVID-19. The patients who suffer from serious mental illness (SMI) were uniquely affected by COVID-19 due to the changes, reduction or shut down of many essential clinical and community support services. Thematic and quantitative analyses of the workers' observations highlighted 6 main areas of note, including significant social isolation and loneliness, clinical course deterioration and life disruption, increased hospital and ER use, police and legal contacts, and substance abuse and related deaths. There were also encouraging signs of positive adaptations in terms of independence and resilience. Reflections of these impacts and potential ameliorating approaches are further discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aly Kassam
- MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, Unity Health Toronto, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Michaela Beder
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Saadia Sediqzadah
- MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, Unity Health Toronto, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Matthew Levy
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Madeleine Ritts
- Department of Psychiatry, Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - John Maher
- Canadian Mental Health Association, Barrie and Ontario Association of ACT and FACT, Barrie, ON, Canada
| | - Nicole Kirwan
- Department of Psychiatry, Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Samuel Law
- MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, Unity Health Toronto, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
- Department of Psychiatry, Unity Health Toronto, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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Wood JD, Watson AC, Pope L, Warnock A, Nelson V, Gesser N, Zern A, Stagoff-Belfort A, de Bibiana JT, Compton MT. Contexts shaping misdemeanor system interventions among people with mental illnesses: qualitative findings from a multi-site system mapping exercise. HEALTH & JUSTICE 2023; 11:20. [PMID: 37014478 PMCID: PMC10071260 DOI: 10.1186/s40352-023-00219-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/20/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND People with mental illnesses are disproportionately entangled in the criminal legal system. Historically, this involvement has resulted from minor offending, often accompanied by misdemeanor charges. In recent years, policymakers have worked to reduce the footprint of the criminal legal system. This paper seeks to better understand how misdemeanor systems intervene in the lives of people with mental illnesses. METHODS System mapping exercises were conducted with misdemeanor system stakeholders from the jurisdictions of Atlanta, Chicago, Manhattan, and Philadelphia. Narrative detail on decision-making and case processing, both generally and in relation to specific types of behavior, including trespassing, retail theft/shoplifting, and simple assault, were coded and analyzed for thematic patterns. Based on the qualitative analysis, this paper offers a conceptual diagram of contexts shaping misdemeanor system interventions among people with mental illnesses. RESULTS All four sites have been engaged in efforts to reduce the use of misdemeanor charges both generally and in relation to people with mental illnesses. Decision-makers across all sites experience contexts that shape how, when, and where they intervene, which are: (1) law and policy environments; (2) location of the behavior; (3) expectations of stakeholders; (4) knowledge of mental illnesses; and (5) access to community resources. Law and policy environments expand or constrain opportunities for diversion. The location of offending is relevant to who has a stake in the behavior, and what demands they have. Clinical, experiential, and system-level knowledge of mental illnesses inform a chain of decisions about what to do. The capacity to address mental health needs is contingent on access to social services, including housing. CONCLUSION People making decisions along the criminal legal continuum are critical to illuminating the dynamic, inter-related contexts that facilitate and frustrate attempts to address defendants' mental health needs while balancing considerations of public safety. Multi-sector, scenario-based or case study exercises could help identify concrete ways of improving each of the contexts that surround whole-of-system decisions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer D. Wood
- Department of Criminal Justice, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Amy C. Watson
- Helen Bader School of Social Welfare, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI USA
| | - Leah Pope
- Department of Psychiatry, Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY USA
| | - Amanda Warnock
- Department of Psychiatry, Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY USA
| | - Veronica Nelson
- Department of Criminal Justice, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA USA
| | - Nili Gesser
- Department of Psychology, University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND USA
| | - Adria Zern
- Department of Psychiatry, Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY USA
| | | | | | - Michael T. Compton
- Department of Psychiatry, Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, NY USA
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Huey L, Andersen J, Bennell C, Ann Campbell M, Koziarski J, Vaughan AD. Caught in the currents: evaluating the evidence for common downstream police response interventions in calls involving persons with mental illness. Facets (Ott) 2021. [DOI: 10.1139/facets-2021-0055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The origins of this report, and of the Mental Health and Policing Working Group, can be traced to the unique situation Canadians have faced as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The unique circumstances of this global outbreak, which have for many Canadians resulted in serious illness and death, intensified economic uncertainties, altered family and lifestyle dynamics, and generated or exacerbated feelings of loneliness and social dislocation, rightly led the Royal Society of Canada’s COVID-19 Taskforce to consider the strains and other negative impacts on individual, group, and community mental health. With the central role that police too often play in the lives of individuals in mental and (or) emotional crisis, we were tasked with exploring what can be reasonably said about the state of our current knowledge of police responses to persons with mental illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Huey
- University of Western Ontario, London, ON, Canada
| | | | | | | | | | - Adam D. Vaughan
- Texas State University, School of Criminal Justice and Criminology, San Marcos, TX USA
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