Forensic psychiatry and prison liaison services in Auckland: the first twelve months.

AIMS

to assess referrals to a prison liaison service of regional forensic services in Auckland.

METHODS

data on forensic psychiatric referrals from Auckland prisons 1 October 1989 to 30 September 1990 were collected. This was the first year of the service.

RESULTS

there were 127 forensic psychiatric referrals in the period. The characteristic profile of such a case was that of a 28.5 year old male, unemployed remanded of Maori ethnic background. The commonest charge was nonsexual assault together with a prominent history of polysubstance misuse. Schizophrenia was the most frequent diagnosis.

CONCLUSIONS

these findings have implications for regional forensic psychiatry services and other mental health providers, and the community in general.