Exit strategy

Aug. 07--MERCER -- When a woman was committed to Mercer County Jail and head jail counselor Ed Hedglin went to assess her, she tried to stab him with a pencil.

"Now, she's holding a full-time job," Hedglin said. "She's functioning like any of us in this room. She's a true success story."

The woman has had the benefit of the Mercer County Collaborative Community Integration Project, which has been nicknamed "the jail project."

The jail project brings together people from the jail, Mercer County Behavioral Health Commission and PennsylvaniaBoard of Probation and Parole to assist certain jail inmates or those on probation who are in danger of returning to jail.

"It came out of a discussion with the jail and probation and parole, trying to better meet the needs of the offenders here at the jail that suffer from a serious mental illness and/or drug dependency," said Jen McElhinny, jail project coordinator and commission case management supervisor. "An effort to try to reduce recidivism and, obviously, any relapse that might occur with mental health and/or substance abuse."

"Also, to better fit their needs when they're outside in the community to have a better support system lined up when they get out," Hedglin said.

The project personnel try to address the individual needs of the inmates, whether they have medical, housing or employment issues, or might need help applying for Social Security Disability.

Jail medical staff works with inmates to understand why they are taking medication, how to take it and how to plan for it, and make sure they have enough until they can see a doctor on the outside. Peer counselors pass on lessons from the school of hard knocks. Family members can be brought into discussions to provide support.

"(We're) trying to remove as many barriers and obstacles as we can prior to being released," McElhinny said.

The involvement of parole and probation officers "sends a pretty powerful message to them that probation is on board with treatment, not necessarily as punitive, but also recognizing that their behavior determines a treatment hat or a law enforcement hat," McElhinny said.

"They take it more seriously," Hedglin said.

The treatment hat doesn't necessarily change into a law enforcement hat if someone messes up.

"If an individual begins to struggle, relapse, whether it's relapse with mental health symptoms or substance, we will have a re-engagement meeting to try to get all the players back at the table," McElhinny said.

The team will look to figure out what is working and what is not for that individual, and what can be done differently that might help, she said.

"It's not, 'We're going to lock you right back up because you gave a dirty drug screen,'" she said. "That's not what this is about."

The project has been in place for about seven months and already has been tweaked, such as making the substance abuse treatment drug Vivitrol available for some opiate abusers.

Mercer County's judges have been involved in discussions and have started recommending offenders for evaluation.

Prior to implementing the program, there wasn't necessarily monitoring of someone who had been recommended for treatment after they got out of jail, Hedglin said.

"Now, with this project, you have people monitoring you, making sure you show up to these meetings and making sure you follow with the treatment, the counseling, whatever it may be," Hedglin said.

"There's more accountability," McElhinny said. "It's more than just their probation officer showing up a couple times a month."

No one has officially graduated from the jail project -- one is close -- but officials are happy with the way the enrollees have responded to it.

"The success rate has been great," Hedglin said.

McElhinny said she will try to monitor graduates.

The program was implemented with existing funding and resources.

"It's a difficult population," McElhinny said. "These offenders that struggle get the message that people really care and do want them to be better."

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