Community Oriented Re-entry Program presented at Music City Tackles Mental Health symposium on March 5, 2018 by Westchester County Department of Correction New York Correct Care Solutions Medical Services, P.C. Westchester Department of Community Mental Health

1. Community
Oriented Re-
Entry Program
Westchester County Department of
Correction
New York Correct Care Solutions
Medical Services, P.C.
Westchester Department of Community
Mental Health

3. Westchester County Department
of Correction
• Local jail and penitentiary complex
• 990,000 square foot facility
• Capacity to hold 1821 inmates
• Of late, average daily census is 1000 - 1100 inmates,
which includes adult men, adult women, and male/female
adolescents.
• 10 clinic areas
• NYCCS contract began July 26, 2010
• Medical, Mental Health, Dental, Medical Records,
Administrative
• NCCHC/ACA accredited

4. Origin of Program
 2014 - Office of Mental Health (OMH) conference
 Finite grant money allocated to six New York jails
 “Do something with this that you think could benefit your
facility.”
 Mental Health focus

5. Origin of Program
 Review of mental health housing within the facility
 Discussions included WCDOC, NYCCS, and DCMH staff
 Community involvement
 November 17, 2014
 Admission process
 Criteria for 4SE admission includes the individual’s severe
mental illness (SMI) diagnosis, his level of functioning and
capacity to benefit from programming, his appropriateness
for structured social interaction, and his need for re-
entry/discharge planning
 Program Staffing

6. Community Oriented Re-Entry
Program – C.O.R.E.
 Unit Design
 State Commission on Correction (SCOC)
 Office of Mental Health
 Interdisciplinary weekly meetings
 Patient review process
 Discharge Planning

7. Program Goals
 Reduce the number of security-related events: Staff
injury; Uses of force
 Improve the overall functioning of the patient: Psychiatric
stabilization
 Comprehensive discharge planning services: Sustain the
patient’s success in the community
 Reduction of recidivism

8. C.O.R.E. Mission Statement
 The Community Oriented Re-Entry Program (C.O.R.E.) is
an innovative approach to providing comprehensive
treatment to patients requiring mental health services
within a correctional setting. A coordinated effort among
Westchester County Department of Correction (WCDOC),
Westchester County Department of Community Mental
Health (WCDCMH) and associated agencies, and New
York Correct Care Solutions Medical Services (NYCCS)
has resulted in a nationally recognized program whose
mission is to help patients attain highest levels of
functioning with focused attention given to community
based, supportive discharge planning in order to reduce
recidivism.

9. C.O.R.E. Mission Statement
 C.O.R.E. program facilitators provide psychoeducational
groups such as Life skills, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy,
Mental Health Recovery, Job Readiness and
Addiction/Recovery. Other areas of attention include
assisting with mental health stabilization, maintaining
sobriety, accessing health care, and guidance related to
legal resources, education, housing, employment, family
reconciliation, and fostering social supports. Empathic
and creative approaches also include Art Therapy,
Journaling, Role Play, Gaming Activities, and Case
Management.

10. C.O.R.E. Mission Statement
 In addition, NYCCS provides clinical evaluation and
treatment services to include medical and psychiatric
assessment, individual counseling, crisis intervention,
medication management, and assistance with discharge
planning.
 C.O.R.E. provides links to community case management
with options for an assigned mentor from a faith based
service. Through the establishment of therapeutic
relationships with community agencies during
incarceration, program graduates are afforded the
opportunity for a successful and supported transition upon
release.

11. C.O.R.E. - Schedule

12. 2014 – 2015 Data
 Review of data

13. DISCIPLINARY VIOLATIONS –
MAY 2014 – JUNE 2015
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
21 21
37
14
12
21
2
0 2 2
1 2
Disciplinary Violations

14. SITE WIDE MENTAL HEALTH
CRISIS CALLS – SEPT 2014 –
FEB 2015
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
Sep-14
Oct-14
Nov-14
Dec-14
Jan-15
Feb-15
275
258
176
145
Site-wide MH Crisis Calls

15. CRISIS CALLS – JAN 2015 –
JUNE 2015
0
2
4
6
8
10
12
14
16
Jan-15 Feb-15 Mar-15 Apr-15 May-15 Jun-15
16
13 13
15
14
13
6
3
12
7
5
10
Comparison of Crisis Calls by Unit
1K Crisis Calls 4SE Crisis Calls

16. January to December 2017
 Review of data

17. Number of Suicide Watch
Initiations

18. Number of Suicide Watch Days in
Total

19. Crisis Calls

20. Civil Discharges

21. Recidivism Data
 2015 – 2017: total of 18,103 admissions to WCDOC
including re-admissions
 The jail population’s total recidivism rate during the same
period was 37.75%
 November 2014 – January 2018: A total of 242 patients
have been admitted to C.O.R.E.
 Of the 242, 17 were admitted twice; 2 were admitted three
times

22. Recidivism Data
 99 patients were readmitted
 143 have not returned
 Total recidivism rate: 49%
 What does this tell us?
 GP recidivism versus MH recidivism

23. Further Recidivism Data
 Refinement of recidivism data
 Community-based tracking
 Replication of model across facilities
 Continued ways to develop innovative ways of providing
treatment for our mentally ill patients within settings that
were not originally designed to house this level of need

24. NCCHC Program of the Year
Award
 2017
 NCCHC Program of the Year Award
 National recognition

25. Multi-agency Collaboration