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33 Canadian J. Criminology 175 (1991)
The Mental Health of Penitentiary Inmates in Isolation

handle is hein.journals/cjccj33 and id is 187 raw text is: The mental health of penitentiary inmates in isolation Sheilagh Hodgins and Gilles C6te Centre de Recherche Philippe Pinel Institut Philippe Pinel de Montrial and Universiti de Montral Only a small proportion of male penitentiary inmates who suffer from severe mental disorders (schizophrenia and major affective disorders) are transferred for care to hospital settings (Hodgins and C6t6 1989; Hodgins, Cyr, Paquet, and Lamy 1988). Many are found within the general penitentiary popula- tion and do not receive treatment. Even those who have been transferred to a hospital setting do not receive after-care when they are returned to the penitentiary, as would an outpatient in the community (Hodgins et al. 1988). Historically, correctional facilities have held mentally disordered inmates in isolation (Brodsky 1984; Tellier, Wormith, and Gendreau 1984; Uhlig 1976; Wilson 1983; Wormith and Borzecki 1985) even though such isola- tion has been shown to exacerbate symptomatology (Wadeson and Carpen- ter 1976). A study of the 304 males admitted to the Special Handling Units between September 1977 and December 1982 found that 12% had previously received psychiatric treatment in the community while 21% did so inside a penitentiary. In addition, it was found that 50% of these inmates had a problem of substance abuse (Porporino and Macdonald-Depew 1983). In 1975, an inquiry was launched into the use of isolation in the pen- itentiaries. The commissioners, headed by Dr. James A. Vantour, visited 13 institutions. According to a report published in the Canadian Medical Journal (Lalonde 1977), it was administrative segregation and not the hole or the protection cells which caused consternation among the commission- ers. Administrative segregation was seen as a tool used by penitentiary admin- istrators to maintain order within the institution. Inmates had no recourse to being transferred to administrative segregation and were often distressed during their stay there. The commission concluded that this form of isola- tion over long periods represented a serious danger for inmates. Canadian Journal of Criminology 175 to 182 Revue canadienne de criminologie April/avril 1991

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