One of our trainees, Dr. Christian Farrell, recently presented his paper, titled “Staff supported community outings among forensic mental health patients: patient characteristics, rehabilitative goals, and adverse outcomes”, at the International Association of Forensic Mental Health Services (IAFMHS) Conference in June 2024. The study involved investigating all Staff Supported Community Outings (SSCOs) that occurred at the BC Forensic Psychiatric Hospital over the course of one year.
Big take away: Over a one-year period, there were 463 SSCOs, involving 1144 patients and one ‘adverse event’. The event involved a single patient who resumed their treatment without any issues. There were no instances of suicide, self-harm, crime/(re-)offending, violence, or substance use during the outings or as a result of the SSCOs.
Furthermore additional evidence suggested patients were building skills that could translate to community re-integration. This suggests SSCOs are a useful aspect of treatment and recovery serving to support forensic psychiatric patients to build life skills for a successful re-integration while maintaining public safety.
Read the full abstract here:
Staff supported community outings (SSCOs) are considered a critical aspect of treatment for forensic psychiatric patients. This study reviewed SSCOs that occurred during a one-year period at a forensic psychiatric hospital and explored the characteristics of patients attending these outings, rehabilitative purpose, and occurrence of adverse events. During the year, 1144 SSCOs occurred, and most patients participated successfully, despite over half the sample having elevated risk for violence and elopement. Staff comments highlighted skill development for patients in areas of daily living, vocation, and leisure. Overall, SSCOs can help patients develop skills for successful reintegration while also supporting public safety.