CASE MANAGEMENT SUPPORT SERVICES – COMMUNITY REINTEGRATION OF OFFENDERS WITH MENTAL ILLNESS AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE (PA)

Program Description
Case Management Support Services (CMSS), located in Erie, Pennsylvania, has been serving the Erie County community for almost 30 years. One program run by CMSS is the Community Reintegration of Offenders with Mental Illness and Substance Abuse (CROMISA) program. The CROMISA program offers a range of support services for male and female former offenders who have been dually diagnosed with mental illness and substance abuse.

The Parole Board and the State Parole Office refer clients into the program. Potential participants must be residents of Erie, Crawford, or Warren Counties with 12 months left on their sentences. Potential clients learn about the program from representatives of CROMISA, Institutional Parole Board representatives, the psychology department, or through CROMISA brochures that are mailed to the correctional institutions.

Services and treatment are divided into four phases: Residential (45-60 days); Community Registration (6-8 months); Discharge Preparation (1-2 months); and Follow-Up (up to 12 months following release). In each phase, clients may access a menu of comprehensive services focused on mental health and substance abuse issues including case management, psychological counseling, individual or group addictions therapy, housing support, and vocational and educational training.

Program Goals
The goal of the program is to prevent substance abuse relapse and to assist clients in successful completion of their parole. The program's long-term goals include helping clients maintain a drug-free life.

Networking, Partnering & Collaboration
The CROMISA project is a collaborative effort involving a number of private and public agencies. The Erie County Office of Drug and Alcohol, the Erie County Office of Mental Health and Mental Retardation, and the Pennsylvania Board of Probation and Parole have provided services and resources for program participants. Numerous social service agencies collaborate with the program by providing referrals and services.

Outcomes
Presently, there are no program outcomes to report. The Civic Institute at Mercyhurst College Center for Justice Research and Policy is in the process of gathering data from the CROMISA program. CROMISA hopes to report on the number of participants who are reincarcerated for new charges or a technical violation, the number of clients who need inpatient services for substance abuse or mental health issues, the number of clients who need to repeat a phase of the program, and how the length of time in prison effects an individual's success in the CROMISA program.

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