Population management

Abstract Jails and prisons share population management challenges with hotels: What beds are available to meet explicit requirements for which individuals? The management of large facilities and systems must incorporate ways to recognize a wide variety of safety and clinical demands in real time. Levels of security risk; medical, mental health, and addiction treatment needs; and sex offender status, among others, must all be considered in placement decisions. Gang management and protective custody are added security factors that require consideration. Much of the work of population management is done at the time of admission into a facility. Court documents are reviewed and prior records retrieved. Custody, medical, and (where indicated) mental health staff interview the incarcerated person on intake. Demographics, aliases, and criminal history are detailed. In a jail, the emphasis is on safety and basic medical/mental health needs. On intake into a prison, additional concerns include educational activities, programming, and vocational needs. Increasing integration of evidence-based systems will likely occur in the future. This chapter discusses such pragmatic issues, particularly in the context of the psychiatric management challenges these issues present.