234 y Corrections and Prison Practices—Adult Forensicsmedication and treatment practices on inmates. Unless research is directed at this
area of corrections, the continuing pattern of problems will occur in the future and
the correctional process will appear more ineffective with regard to treatment and
medication of inmates. Legal standards involving mental health care provisions are
among the most composite regulations affecting jails, jail policy, and public policy
today. Court decisions regarding the provision of medical care to jail detainees,
criminal responsibility for an illegal act, and treatment of the mentally ill in jail play
a vital role in legal standards related to the administration of mental health treatment
and medication of prisoners. These matters also need to be considered.Suggestions For Future ResearchMore research needs to be directed toward implementing safe regulations and pro-
cedures regarding inmate treatment administration. For example, a therapist has the
ability to exert a high level of control over a prisoner. Experimental methods such
as drug therapy and electric shock can change the behavior of an inmate in dramatic
and often harmful ways. Unnecessary adverse side-effects may occur when these
procedures are administered. Unstable and unpredictable treatment procedures con-
tinue to overwhelm prisons. As mentioned earlier, the Washington v. Harper (1990)
case is one instance of an inmate receiving involuntary treatment and suffering as a
consequence of that treatment.
One example of an unstable and unpredictable treatment procedure is when the
prison's needs are placed in priority over the needs of the inmate, and treatment
programs are temporarily withheld because of prison activity or disciplinary behav-
iors. For instance, offenders who violate institutional rules may be placed in solitary
confinement for a period of time without intervention. Treatment can be termi-
nated when the needs of the institution are more important, causing the treatment
to lose its effect and assist the offender. As a result, inmates lose confidence in the
prison's therapeutic programming. In these instances, prisoners do not have faith
in the correctional facility's promise to provide effective treatment because it can
be discontinued based on the needs and financial status of the institution. The lack
of prison industry and the presence of enforced inactivity have led to the develop-
ment of treatment programs that fill time. The long-term value of such programs
is questionable at best, and they are a topic of heated discussion, requiring further
research.
Unless some highly effective treatment programs are installed and supported by
solid evaluation, intervention initiatives will be seriously jeopardized. As a result
of failing to improve intervention programs for offenders, future appeals by the
offender will not be aimed at the specific actions that brought the person to prison
but, rather, will be targeted at the treatment programs themselves. Clearly, still more
research and testing need to be conducted in order to ensure that prisoners receive
safe and effective treatment programs today and in the future.