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Our public safety research team has published an article in The Prison Journal, entitled: "Canadian Provincial and Territorial Correctional Worker Mental Health and Well-Being Study (CWMH): Navigating Practical and Unanticipated Methodological Challenges". We hope this paper will be of value to researchers seeking to replicate similar studies on correctional worker mental health and well-being or learn about the complexities and challenges of conducting a national study. Abstract: Previous research assessing correctional worker (CW) mental health has seldom assessed for differences based on jurisdiction or diverse occupational categories. The current study was designed to provide a nuanced quantitative examination of mental health disorder prevalence and related problems among CWs and to qualitatively explore the varying social contexts surrounding CW well-being. We reflect on how we overcame unanticipated challenges and disruptions (e.g., technology, COVID-19 pandemic) throughout the design, launch, and analysis of the survey, and illustrate how our national study, driven by a rigorous methodological approach and collaborative research design, builds on the extant CW mental health and wellness literature. https://lnkd.in/eHYTJ-fX #corrections #mentalhealth #researchdesign #COVID19

Mental health in policing and police custody https://lnkd.in/eSeJ-mFB From my perspective the good intentions are failing. Per Agreement to support mental health care and free up police time (England) https://lnkd.in/eT6XSTQ3 "The police are often not the most appropriate agency to respond to mental health incidents, which can result in greater distress for people with mental health needs and prevents police officers from carrying out their other duties." Wales needs effective Mental Health Care. The police should decline to respond. Instead ambulances should. My facebook posts refer

Why is Empathy a super strength? EBW Partner, Mobile Team Challenge (MTC) transformed the lives of a group of prisoners by leveraging Emotional Intelligence.     💡Barry Bailey and his team used the actionable insights from EBW Assessments, in a Ministry of Justice sponsored pilot programme, that resulted in a zero-reoffending within the group of prisoners post release.     This was achieved through six months of workshops, which focused on developing empathy among participants.     By leveraging the assessment insights, MTC achieved a 55% increase in empathy scores, defying typical re-offending rates. This success prompted collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office on community projects, marking a significant stride in fostering empathy and reducing recidivism in the UK.    Read more about Barry Bailey's success in our article: https://lnkd.in/ejPfYybu       #Empathy #rehabilitation #EmotionalIntelligence #psychometrics

Moving knowledge of the mind and thinking and behavioural alternatives, upstream is the solution. Situations in life will always be difficult, but they don't have to become adversity. That really depends on mental agility. Achieved through new knowledge it enhances your ability to harness alternative responses. There are solutions. New solutions start with new thinking. In Mindsmith Thinking we focus on mental agility, ideally provided at the earliest opportunity. #suicideprevention #mentalhealth

https://lnkd.in/dpGhqtfr Glad to see attention being drawn to such a critical issue. Whilst I'm proud that I get to devote my working life to being part of the solution, I also feel deep empathy for the officers and I'm unsurprised by the stories told in the article. There simply isn't enough funding for Forces to provide the specialist and longitudinal support that is needed to all who need it. I know at Gloucestershire we do all that we can, but what we "can" isn't always enough. It troubles me regularly. More needs to be done to ensure all Forces are able to allocate sufficient resources. The NHS needs bolstering to meet the mental health needs of the whole population, which includes police officers. There is so much amazing work underway linked to The Police Covenant that can't come soon enough. If I could pick just a few things that the Home Office could do to help it would be: - Mandatory training of GPs on policing health inequalities - Fast tracking of Police Officers with symptoms of PTSD to high intensity services - Ring fenced funding for OH/Wellbeing staffing resources and therapeutic budgets. - The last one is a biggie... FUND ADEQUATE POLICE NUMBERS TO MANAGE THE DEMANDS OF MODERN POLICING. Locally this would allow Forces to: - provide annual psychological screening for ALL not just "high risk" - pre-retirement PTSD screening - trauma therapy for all who need it for as long as they need it (with an appropriate exit strategy) - strengthen preventative programmes which build resilience. - reduce the unrelenting trauma load of officers through adequate officer numbers I am pleased to say that at Gloucestershire locally there has been investment in recent years which has gone a long way. But without National leverage (and funding) we are scraping the surface. Healthier Officers = Less crime and improved outcomes to victims. SIMPLES.

The third Monday of January is the saddest day of the year #BlueMonday.      “Although growing measures are in place to improve mental health and wellbeing among correctional workers, gaps in service and barriers to treatment persist” – Brower (2013); Gurda (2019)     Digitizing processes in prison can significantly contribute to correctional staff’s mental health and wellbeing by streamlining workflows and creating a more efficient and supportive work environment.      Digitized systems also often offer remote access. This flexibility can enhance work-life balance, enabling staff to manage their responsibilities more effectively and reducing the potential for burnout.      Read more on this in our most recent blog, “Transforming Correctional Staff Wellbeing with Innovative Technology:” https://lnkd.in/eTBXB2Xq    #CorePathway #PrisonSoftware #WorkLifeBalance

Working inside of a correctional facility can be overwhelming, with countless tasks demanding your attention all at once. It’s easy (and normal) to feel overwhelmed and stressed as the to-do list piles up. And that sucks. But what can we do? How does one reduce said stress and regain control over their sanity? Well, keep reading and I’ll show you. #corrections #mentalhealth #stressmanagement

Why is Empathy a super strength? EBW Partner, Mobile Team Challenge (MTC) transformed the lives of a group of prisoners by leveraging Emotional Intelligence.     💡Barry Bailey and his team used the actionable insights from EBW Assessments, in a Ministry of Justice sponsored pilot programme, that resulted in a zero-reoffending within the group of prisoners post release.     This was achieved through six months of workshops, which focused on developing empathy among participants.     By leveraging the assessment insights, MTC achieved a 55% increase in empathy scores, defying typical re-offending rates. This success prompted collaboration with the Ministry of Justice and the Home Office on community projects, marking a significant stride in fostering empathy and reducing recidivism in the UK.    Read more about Barry Bailey's success in our article: https://lnkd.in/enKDn-Gq       #Empathy #rehabilitation #EmotionalIntelligence #psychometrics

Custodial settings are historically harsh environments with exposure to violence, complex mental health presentations and institutional hierarchies. Although they are also tasked with the rehabilitation, reintegration support and compassionate care for our most vulnerable community members. The mental health and well-being of correctional staff is critical to successfully achieving this balance... This paper offers insights into the factors required to avoid burnout and facilitate posttraumatic growth amongst staff to create an workplace where everyone thrives; "A sense of workplace belongingness and the use of adaptive coping strategies were significant positive predictors of well-being and posttraumatic growth...the receipt of social support were additional significant positive predictors of well-being. These results highlight the importance of individual, interpersonal, and organizational factors in promoting positive health outcomes"

Staff Burnout in the Prison Environment 🔥❤️🔥😩😣 At Arukah we are passionate about supporting the mental health of people in prison, but did you know that we are all so passionate about supporting the mental health of people who work in prison?🤗 Prison can be very daunting and traumatising place. The impact of both witnessing and being victim of, outbursts of aggression, violence, observing self-harm and self-inflicted death, can have a huge toll on prison officers. This visceral trauma creates barriers to healthy relationships and a mindset of dehumanisation, it impacts physical health resulting in time of work, and increases attrition rates. As you can see from this large study in Canada, some even contemplate taking their own lives. We need to build a resilient and capable workforce that has capacity to support each other as well as the people they serve in prison. Arukah offers a program for staff called the Resilient Practitioner. The program helps teach staff and support workers how to protect themselves from traumatic events and maintain that personable approach to working with people who may have some complex and challenging behaviours. If you would like to know more, then please drop us an email at hello@arukah.co.uk and we would be delighted to have a conversation. *** One study with a large and diverse sample found that, in Canada, correctional workers reported past-year or lifetime suicidal ideation (7.0%, 26.6%), planning (2.6%, 11.9%), and attempts (n/a, 5.2%), with a prevalence being considerably higher than general population estimates (Carleton et al., 2021). https://lnkd.in/dSET_AdW #traumarecovery #efttapping #prison #mentalhealth #tapping #addiction #mentalhealthmatters #prisonofficer #emotionalresilience Ministry of Justice UK NHS England HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS)