Vulnerable Populations

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Oral Health

Dental health needs are commonly reported by inmates but information on severity and care is limited. One study finds that over one-third of inmates reported problems with their gums and teeth and less than a quarter of men and two-fifths of women had seen a dentist in the last year. An Iowa study found that the state’s incarcerated population h

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Chronic Diseases

Few studies look at the prevalence of chronic illness among jail or prison inmates. Although, a National Commission on Correctional Health Care report (2001) states that the prevalence of chronic illnesses and communicable diseases is greater among people in jails and prisons. Hypertension, asthma, and diabetes are among the more common chronic di

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Infectious Diseases

Infectious diseases appear at higher rates among inmates than among the general public (Colsher et al., 1992; Fitzgerald et al. 1984; Garrity et al., 2003; Kahn et al, 2004; Lindquist and Lindquist, 1999; Wallace et al., 1991; Hammett et al., 2002). The estimated prevalence of HIV infection in the United States is over two times higher among incar

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Substance Abuse and Mental Health

Substantial evidence shows that the use and abuse of illegal drugs and the abuse of legal drugs — including alcohol, tobacco/nicotine, and prescription drugs — are prevalent health issues in incarcerated populations (Hammett, Roberts, and Kennedy, 2001).

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Health Care Needs

No ongoing data collection system exists to provide information on the health status of prisoners leaving prison or jail. Data are available, although not always systematically, on the health of individuals while they are incarcerated, and one can assume that these health conditions are similarly found in the population of prisoners that are relea

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Social and Economic Disadvantage

Empirical evidence shows that most individuals released from prison will return there for new crimes or technical violations within three years of being released (Langan and Levin, 2002). What results, then, is a cycle of removal and return in communities with already large concentrations of social and economic disadvantage. Generally, this phenom

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Family Formation

Incarceration severely affects intimate relationships, including those with partners and children, by creating barriers to intimacy, family involvement, and economic contributions. Western (2004) documents that incarceration affects family formation. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Well-being Study, he found that formerly incarcerat

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Child Outcomes

Of special concern to HHS are the nearly 7.5 million children, more than 10 percent of children under age 18, who have a parent who is currently incarcerated or on probation or parole (Mumloa, 2006). These children are disproportionately minority and poor (Glaze and Muruschak, 2008). Bruce Western and Christopher Wildeman (2009) estimate that amon

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Human Services Needs

Research reveals that many prisoners return home in need of help to reintegrate into their community and into their families. They lack the proper means to reconnect with family members, acquire housing and jobs, and overcome substance abuse and other health problems. Even worse, ex-offenders are increasingly returning to neighborhoods that are pl

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Overview of the Relevant Research

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Organization and Contents

The next section provides an overview of the relevant research on the key human services and health needs of incarcerated and reentering individuals and their families along with illustrative examples from the inventory of current HHS activities addressing these issues.

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . HHS Interest and Role

Over 7.3 million people are on probation, in jail, in prison, or on parole in the United States ( PEW Center on the States, 2009). Incarceration and reentry adversely impact a number of areas in which the Department of Health and Human Services is heavily invested, such as family formation, parent-child relationships, economic self-sufficiency, an

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Purpose

The purpose of this document is to help Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) agencies know the full range of programs and services in the Department that currently address the needs of incarcerated individuals and their families and to understand what research and evaluation efforts are underway to identify evidence-based practices. Altho

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Introduction

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families . Acknowledgements

This report builds on a draft of an inventory of HHS programs for incarcerated and re-entering individuals that was designed and compiled by Diana Merelman in 2009. Her contribution to this current effort is gratefully acknowledged. Appreciation is also extended to the members of the HHS Discussion Group on Incarceration and Reentry for their help

Overview and Inventory of HHS Efforts to Assist Incarcerated and Reentering Individuals and their Families

Prepared by: Erica Meade and Linda Mellgren The views expressed in this report are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation or the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

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Incarceration and the Family: A Review of Research and Promising Approaches for Serving Fathers and Families. References

Accordino, M. P., & Guerney, B. (1998). An evaluation of the relationship enhancement program with prisoners and their wives. Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 42 (1), 5-15. Adalist-Estrin, A. (1994). Family support and criminal justice. In S. L. Kagan & B. Weissbound (Eds.), Putting families first: America’s f

Incarceration and the Family: A Review of Research and Promising Approaches for Serving Fathers and Families. 9. Conclusions

This report documents the state of the extant research on incarceration and family life. Our goal was to provide a timely and evidence-based summary of the research in order to document what we known about the effects of father incarceration on family life and to illuminate some next steps in research, policy, and programming for the field.

Incarceration and the Family: A Review of Research and Promising Approaches for Serving Fathers and Families. 8.7 Research Limitations

Several challenges to the implementation of marriage and family strengthening programs in prison and upon reentry have been identified, and many recommendations for improving implementation have been made based on descriptive and anecdotal information. Identification of challenges has rarely involved actual surveys of program or correctional staff

Incarceration and the Family: A Review of Research and Promising Approaches for Serving Fathers and Families. 8.6 Cultural Sensitivity

Although a high percentage of incarcerated fathers are of ethnic minorities, very few family strengthening programs in prison or surrounding reentry have been designed with cultural issues in mind. Those programs that have addressed culture have reported positive reactions from participants. For instance, one program uses discussion of family trad

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