Using the RNR Tool to Inform Transition of Care for Louisiana Co-occurring Program Participants Discharging from State Institutions to the Community

• In Event: A Tool for All Settings? Applying RNR in Prison, Jail/Reentry, and Community Supervision

Abstract

The Louisiana Co-Occurring Disorders Integrated Treatment and Reentry Program is aimed at improving outcomes for individuals incarcerated in state corrections facilities with co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders who are released to the greater New Orleans and Baton Rouge areas through an integrated pre-release/post-release care model comprised of appropriate evidence-based treatment and services. A central feature of this program is a robust transition of care process through a care team approach that uses a decision support tool (the RNR Simulation Tool’s Assess an Individual portal) to identify and meet the needs of participants returning to the community. The tool is administered at three transition points along the program continuum: pre-release, 60 days post-release and at completion (240 days post-release). In addition to providing evidence-based decision support for the transition team and post-release care team (community corrections and community treatment providers), the RNR Simulation Tool has also served to identify gaps in service at the community level allowing the program to strengthen and build out its integrated care model. This presentation will discuss the application of the tools within the Louisiana Co-occurring Program, as well as lessons learned and issues of decision support tool ownership in a care team approach.

Authors

• Alexandra Priebe, Louisiana Public Health Institute

• Shelley Edgerton, Louisiana Deparment of Corrections

• Rhett Covington, Louisiana Deparment of Public Safety and Corrections