Factors Which Influence Recidivism Rates for Individuals at a Regional Treatment Center (RTC) Who Have Been Dually Diagnosed with Mental Illness/Chemical Dependency (MI/CD)

This exploratory study was conducted to examine factors associated with the recidivism rate of hospitalization admissions for individuals who have been admitted to a mentally ill and chemically dependent unit at a local Regional Treatment Center (RTC). The subject population consists of 23 men and 7 women between the ages of 19-49 years of age who have been court-mandated to the state treatment facility due to severe psychological disorders. For the purpose of this study, the term recidivism is defined as readmission to the facility within one year of discharge. The data were drawn from existing records, such as psychosocial reports, social work assessments, court commitment reports, and history & physical examination reports. To ensure confidentiality of the patients, all identifying factors have been excluded from the discussion. The findings indicate that six factors such as diagnosis, family support, community involvement, social networks, medication compliance and discharge planning all reduce the occurrence of recidivism. Data gathered in this study indicate that a recidivism rate of approximately 10% currently exists on the ward. This percentage is similar to data which was gathered during the 1994 hospital wide recidivism study