Mental Health in Corrections

Instructions
In this discussion board assignment, you will watch videos of correctional officers encountering mentally ill individuals and answer questions about the actions the correctional staff take and about the challenges of mental illness in correctional centers.

Videos
Begin by watching the following videos. The first video is the extraction of an offender with mental health challenges and the second is a short video on Institutionalized: Mental Health Behind Bars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vlcQNxQIe4o (Links to an external site.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fQ50a-m92Y (Links to an external site.)

After you have have watched both videos, draft a response that addresses the following points. Ensure you comment on both videos, as they show very different situations.

Identify some of the pre-existing biases that you observed from the correctional officers and/or the person suffering from a mental crisis.
Discuss the positive strategies you see employed in these videos and the areas where you see a need for improvement. Explain your choices.
Discuss how incidents like the ones shown in the videos impact the public’s view of corrections.
Consider and share other public mental health and corrections issues if they are relevant to prove your point(s). For example, you may post links to other videos and articles and/or appropriately cite other sources (in APA).
As you formulate the response you will share with your classmates, be mindful of your language and practice sensitivity to the feelings and opinions of others. At no time in this course should you ever intentionally seek to offend another individual. This is not to say you can’t discuss specific examples from your life, but please, “check” your biases before you share and always be courteous and respectful. In addition, never feel like you have to share beyond your comfort level. Some of the most powerful reflection can be done internally.