MAP Centre for Urban Health Solutions, St Michael's Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
PLoS One. 2023 Feb 17;18(2):e0281760. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0281760. eCollection 2023.
When people leave correctional institutions, they face myriad personal, social and structural barriers to reentry, including significant challenges with mental health, substance use, and homelessness. However, there are few reentry programs designed to support people's health, wellbeing, and social integration, and there are even fewer evaluations of such programs. The purpose of this article is to report the qualitative findings from an early process evaluation of the Reintegration Centre-a peer-led service hub designed to support men on the day they are released from custody. We conducted semi-structured qualitative interviews and examined quantitative service intake data with 21 men who accessed the Reintegration Centre immediately upon release. Participants encountered significant reentry challenges and barriers to service access and utilization. The data suggest that the peer-led service hub model enhanced the service encounter experience and efficiently and effectively addressed reentry needs through the provision of basic supports and individualized service referrals. Notably, the Reintegration Centre's proximity to the detention centre facilitated rapid access to essential services upon release, and the peer-support workers affirmed client autonomy and moral worth in the service encounter, fostering mutual respect and trust. Locating reentry programs near bail courts and detention centres may reduce barriers to service access. A peer-led service hub that provides immediate support for basic needs along with individualized service referrals is a promising approach to reentry programs that aim to support post-release health, wellbeing, and social integration. A social system that fosters cross-sectoral collaboration and continuity of care through innovative funding initiatives is vital to the effectiveness and sustainability of such reentry programs.
当人们离开惩教机构时，他们面临着无数个人、社会和结构上的重新融入障碍，包括心理健康、药物使用和无家可归等重大挑战。然而，很少有重新融入计划旨在支持人们的健康、幸福和社会融合，甚至更少对这些计划进行评估。本文的目的是报告 Reintegration Centre 的定性研究结果——这是一个由同伴领导的服务中心，旨在支持男性在被拘留后获释的当天重新融入社会。我们对 21 名刚出狱就立即进入 Reintegration Centre 的男性进行了半结构化的定性访谈，并检查了他们的定量服务使用数据。参与者在重新融入社会时遇到了重大的挑战和障碍，包括服务的获取和使用。这些数据表明，同伴领导的服务中心模式通过提供基本支持和个性化的服务转介，增强了服务体验，并有效地满足了重新融入的需求。值得注意的是，Reintegration Centre 靠近拘留中心，便于在获释后迅速获得基本服务，同伴支持工作者在服务接触中肯定了客户的自主权和道德价值，促进了相互尊重和信任。将重新融入计划设在保释法庭和拘留中心附近，可能会减少服务获取的障碍。一个提供基本需求即时支持和个性化服务转介的同伴领导的服务中心，是支持释放后健康、幸福和社会融合的重新融入计划的一种有前途的方法。一个通过创新的资助举措促进跨部门合作和护理连续性的社会系统，对于这些重新融入计划的有效性和可持续性至关重要。
