Improving Jail Navigator Mental Health Referrals

Abstract

Discharge planning links inmates with mental illness to community resources upon release. Jail navigators provide discharge planning services. A process was needed to improve referrals to jail navigators. The Doctor of Nursing Practice quality improvement project developed a systematic process guided by a policy and procedure for screening and identifying inmates with mental illness to increase jail navigator referrals. The plan-do-study-act method of evaluating change was the basis for the overall development, implementation, evaluation and sustainability of the systematic process. Rogers’s diffusion of innovation model was the framework for successful adoption of the new policy and procedure by clinic staff. There was a pre-intervention baseline of zero as no referrals were previously generated by the clinic staff. The Brief Jail Community Release Needs Assessment and algorithm generated eleven jail navigator referrals during the eight week implementation period. The criteria for receiving discharge planning assessments should be broadened to include all inmates reporting homelessness. Effective navigation of jail inmates with mental illness increases coordination with community services which is the most effective strategy to reduce recidivism. The project ensured evidence based quality improvement and an advancement of nursing practice for a vulnerable population.