Researchers evaluate program aimed at transitioning health care for inmates being released from jail
Since June 2021, researchers in the Department of Family and Community Medicine Division of Health Research and Evaluation, including director Manorama Khare, PhD, MS, Alesia Jones, PhD and David Pluta, MPH, have been conducting an evaluation of the Compassionate Appreciation for Recovery in Everyone (CARE) program. The goal of the program is to connect formerly incarcerated individuals with mental health and substance use treatment through the UI Health Mile Square Health Center- L.P. Johnson Rockford upon their return to the community. This initiative of the Department of Family and Community Medicine funded by a grant from the Winnebago County Community Mental Health Board.
In the Spring of 2023, interviews with program participants began to better understand their experience with the program. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive with participants talking about how their treatment had changed their life for the better and they have expressed a great deal of gratitude for the CARE program providers and staff.
One participant highlighted the importance of having support upon their release from jail, saying “It’s great to be out and have resources. When I got out of jail they didn’t just throw me in the street and say: here’s no resources.”
Others described the dramatic changes they have made in their lives after receiving treatment. One participant said, “I haven’t drank in 10 months. I don’t ever want to drink again. I don’t crave alcohol. I don’t think about it. It’s not part of my life. My marriage is completely different. My work is completely different. I’m a completely different person.”
Another expressed, “I’ve held a job, I got a baby, I got my license back — my mind frame is in a different spot.”
Participant experiences like the ones above are not unique. They reflect the significant impact on the lives of community members through the CARE program.