Reference no: EM133507496

Discussion Post

Question 1) What are some of the organizational differences between correctional mental health delivery systems? Why is an understanding of these differences important? Is there any particular delivery system that appeals to you more than others?

Question 2) One of the purposes of incarceration is incapacitation. Incapacitation is the concept that threats to the community are removed through a period of incarceration. So how can we appropriately balance the goal of incapacitation with the role of reintegration that correctional facilities must play? Are these two goals so juxtaposed that correctional facilitates can do neither goal appropriately? Access and read the GCU Statement on the Integration of Faith and Work. Explain how might a person with the Christian worldview approach the balance of the goal of incapacitation with the role of reintegration.

Question 3) What are considered suicide risk factors? How might these factors be exacerbated in a correctional facility? What constructive measures can be taken by correctional facilities administrators to curb suicide?

Question 4) Analyze if inmates should be able to refuse mental health treatment. Currently, when may an inmate be forced to be provided mental health treatment? How could you fashion a treatment plan for noncompliant suicidal inmate? Justify your answers with scholarly research.

Question 5) Should prisoners with a history of opiate dependence be offered opiate replacement therapy while incarcerated? Why or why not?

Question 6) What are the ethical considerations of prescribing psychotropic medications for psychotic individuals? What are the risks of inmates taking these medications? How can prison officials reduce these risks when it appears that an inmate could benefit from psychotropic medications? How might prison officials encourage an atmosphere of compliance with such a program?

Question 7) Critics argue that some types of prison labor take away from free market enterprise. Should we be concerned with prison labor being a form of low cost labor that does not assist offenders in vocational rehabilitation but rather hinders capitalist markets?

Question 8) How does vocational rehabilitation promote change in inmate behavior? How can mental health treatment be incorporated into a vocational rehabilitation setting?

Question 9) Are female psychologists better suited to treat female offenders? Explain why based on the role a psychologist should play.

Question 10) Should female offenders receive the same program and service opportunities that male offenders receive, or are there any significant, substantive differences between men and women that warrant the provision of different services? If different services were provided, would this violate the equal protection clause of the 5th or 14th Amendment?

Question 11) Dependent on the jurisdiction some juvenile criminal records may be sealed or expunged with relative ease. Considering that some juvenile offenses can be particularly egregious should juveniles be able to seal or expunge their records. What should be the limits of their ability to seal or expunge records?

Question 12) The psychologist/mental health professional must sometimes walk a fine line between the best interests of a juvenile offender and the desires of his or her parent or guardian. How can a psychologist/mental health professional develop a mutually beneficial agreement for a juvenile offender and parents or guardians? What pitfalls might exist for a psychologist/mental health professional placed into such a situation?

Question 13) Some people do not want to comply with societal behavioral norms. This may be exasperated in a correctional setting. How can a mental health professional be able to assist in changing anti-social behavior of disruptive inmates? How effective would these methods be in the face of irrational behavior?

Question 14) What special considerations must be made with an inmate who self-injures? What role can a psychologist or other mental health provider play to curb self-injury by inmates?

Question 15) Generally speaking, the public favors punishment instead of rehabilitation. As professionals in the field, what can we do to foster an environment that encourages forgiveness of offenders? Can we utilize our individual faith in encouraging a shift in this public paradigm? After reading the GCU Statement on the Integration of Faith and Work, explain how Christians feel about forgiveness and restoration. What might a professional with the Christian worldview do to foster an environment that encourages forgiveness and rehabilitation of offenders?

Question 16) Consider the growing American incarceration complex. With such an investment in incarceration, what place does rehabilitation have in the future? How may the American prison system encourage and fund rehabilitation efforts when that is not the primary focus?