Racial Differences in Self-Report of Mental Illness and Mental Illness Treatment in the Community: An Analysis of Jail Intake Data.

ABSTRACT: Jails and prisons in the United States house people with elevated rates of mental health and substance use disorders. The goal of this cross-sectional study was to evaluate the frequency of racial/ethnic differences in the self-report of mental illness and psychiatric medication use at jail entry. Our sample included individuals who had been incarcerated between 2016 and 2020 at the Middlesex Jail & House of Correction, located in Billerica, MA. We used data from the "Offender Management System," the administrative database used by the jail containing data on people who are incarcerated, and COREMR, the electronic medical record (EMR) used in the Middlesex Jail & House of Correction. We evaluated two primary outcomes (1) self-reported mental illness history and (2) self-reported use of psy

SUBMITTER: Plummer N 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10543583 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature