When the physical body of a person is ill, sympathy, care, and loving support is given to the ailing person. Yet, those who are diagnosed with mental illnesses often suffer alone. Labeled as weird, crazy, or eccentric, those who possess a mental illness are often rejected by society. For this post, I will be discussing the benefits and barriers to incorporating the family into the care of the an incarcerated and mentally ill patient. Mental disorders have been a subject of fear, misunderstanding, and rejection for centuries. In the past, those who suffered from a mental illness were institutionalized away from society, often permanently. Because of the past belief that mental illnesses could not be cured, many families prematurely lost important
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Yes, some inmates display dysfunctional behavioral issues, but many are what the state of Ohio labels as those who are ‘severely mentally ill’. Years of inability to successfully nurture relationships, retain jobs, or independently care for themselves, many mentally ill people lead lives of crime and drug addiction. Therefore, by being incarcerated, social support, particularly family support, can be strained or even negative. Many of the incarcerated men are husbands, fathers, sons, and grandfathers who still have active relationships with family members through weekly onsite visits, daily phone calls, and virtual visits on their Kiosks. Therefore, the benefits of family support of the mentally ill patient are crucial even for those who are incarcerated (Wallace, Fahmy, Cotton, Jimmons, McKay, Stoffer, & Syed, 2016). By incorporating the family in the care of the mentally ill patient, positive outcomes can occur such as, higher medication compliance, successful long-term treatment, and less cases of addiction relapses. In contrast, negative factors may also result if the family system is already flawed. Unhealthy coping strategies, bad habits, or toxic lifestyles can lead the mentally ill patient back to a life of crime and addiction Wallace, et al., 2016). Most importantly for long-term success is the identification of positive influences, as opposed to negative influences, that family members may bring to the mentally ill
Yes, some inmates display dysfunctional behavioral issues, but many are what the state of Ohio labels as those who are ‘severely mentally ill’. Years of inability to successfully nurture relationships, retain jobs, or independently care for themselves, many mentally ill people lead lives of crime and drug addiction. Therefore, by being incarcerated, social support, particularly family support, can be strained or even negative. Many of the incarcerated men are husbands, fathers, sons, and grandfathers who still have active relationships with family members through weekly onsite visits, daily phone calls, and virtual visits on their Kiosks. Therefore, the benefits of family support of the mentally ill patient are crucial even for those who are incarcerated (Wallace, Fahmy, Cotton, Jimmons, McKay, Stoffer, & Syed, 2016). By incorporating the family in the care of the mentally ill patient, positive outcomes can occur such as, higher medication compliance, successful long-term treatment, and less cases of addiction relapses. In contrast, negative factors may also result if the family system is already flawed. Unhealthy coping strategies, bad habits, or toxic lifestyles can lead the mentally ill patient back to a life of crime and addiction Wallace, et al., 2016). Most importantly for long-term success is the identification of positive influences, as opposed to negative influences, that family members may bring to the mentally ill