Improving the Assessment, Case Planning and Referral Processes for Offenders: Main Findings and Lessons Learned from the CJDATS Organizational Process Improvement Intervention (OPII) Study

• In Event: NIDA’s Criminal Justice Drug Abuse Treatment Studies (CJDATS): Findings and Lessons Learned from Implementation Research

Abstract

The successful re-integration of substance-abusing offenders requires multiple, inter-agency processes that link secured facilities (jails, prisons), community-correctional systems (probation, parole), and community health systems (substance abuse treatment, mental health services, community health centers). This paper presents findings from the CJDATS Organizational Process Improvement Intervention study (OPII), which was designed to help correctional agencies identify and improve the assessment, case planning, referral, and coordination processes between correctional and community treatment agencies. The OPII was evaluated in 21 local interagency Local Change Teams (LCT) among 9 research centers using a randomized cluster design with multiple assessment points, with data analyzed using HLM models. Preliminary findings indicate that the strategy of using a LCT and external facilitator for organizational process improvement increased staff perceptions of key dimensions of the assessment and case planning process. Significant influences on the success of process improvement efforts include management support, the working alliance between change team members and the facilitator, and the degree of cohesiveness within the change team. Although additional analyses will be conducted, overall, the OPII appears to be an effective strategy for assessing and addressing issues in interagency collaboration related to enhancing offender access to treatment services and other services in the community.

Authors

• Michael Prendergast, UCLA Integrated Substance Abuse Programs

• Michael Shafer, Arizona State University

• Wayne N. Welsh, Temple University

• Gerald Melnick, National Development and Research Institutes, Inc.

• Richard Rivera, Arizona State University