I was wondering about the care people get after being released from prison. I hold an art workshop at a drop-in center that serves the mentally ill. One day a man was trying to arrange services for himself and find a way to get a dollar so he could pay the one dollar a night charge at a homeless shelter. I write 2 blogs. One about the drop-in center (I hide identities) called word salad world and another about general mental health issues called a baffled look. I'm researching what kinds of services this man is entitled to receive so I can help him and post the information in a baffled look. If people received follow up care after coming out of the hospital they wouldn't decompensate and get arrested for petty or serious crimes. Has anyone who has been in jail received proper follow up care?
A lot of people at the drop-in center don't understand that they're ill. They know they've been in the mental health system and get a free meal and other services but they don't believe they're ill. So when they feel bad they use drugs or alcohol to self medicate and wind up getting arrested. Over half the people that come to my drop-in center are homeless. They get arrested for nuisance crimes or drug possession because after the drop-in center closes for the day they have no place to go. There's a PBS Frontline documentary called The New Asylums about mentally ill people in the criminal justice system and another called The Released about services after incarceration. I highly recommend watching them.