Treatment Of The Mentally Ill And The Prison System

In the Frontline presentation, â€Å"The New Asylums†, the program explored the lives in prison of several Ohio inmates. The presentation presented numerous distinct issues of the treatment of the mentally ill in the prison system. The most significant issues presented within the program were the medical treatment received both in and out of the prison system, factors that influence punishment, isolation and medication, the length of the sentencing the mentally ill receive, and why prisons seem to have become the new asylums. One of the most controversial issues regarding the mentally ill and the prison system is the medical treatment received. According to the film, â€Å"16% of the prison population in the state of Ohio, which reflects a national average, are persons who have been diagnosed with mental illness.† Prisons began as an institution designed to rehabilitate, however, a vast majority of prisons throughout the country do not provide adequate medical care for their mentally ill inmates. However, the prisons that do possess adequate health care are most likely the first instance in which the inmates with mental illness have received any sort of treatment in their entire life. People with chronic mental illness need constant supervision which they cannot get outside of prison. Although inmates does not receive the most extensive treatment, the treatment they do receive is well beyond the treatment they would have received had they stayed out of the criminal justice system.Show MoreRelatedMental Health Treatment Of Mentally Ill Essay1542 Words   |  7 Pagesinsufficient for the mentally ill population. 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