Indeed, it's not just prisoners being treated for mental illness who feel a stigma—it's also their providers. "A lot of practices don't want our prisoners," Penn said. "They're worried about the danger." Having providers come to the patients, in prison, poses its own problems. "The providers who are available, they don't want to be driving to a prison and patted down," Penn said. "We've had clinical staff be assaulted or threatened." It's also tough to orchestrate travel between the facilities, which can be miles apart. So since 1994, Texas has had a telemedicine program for its prisons.
Notice:
The National Institute of Corrections is currently assessing its website and materials in accordance with recent Executive Orders and related guidance. During this review, some of NIC’s webpages and publications may be temporarily unavailable. Please revisit this web page for updates.
Turning to telemedicine for prisoners' mental health treatment
Notice about external resources
These links are being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; they do not constitute an endorsement or an approval by the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. NIC bears no responsibility for the accuracy, legality or content of the external site or for that of subsequent links. Contact the external site for answers to questions regarding its content.
- Created: Updated: