Juvenile detainees

Locked In—Physically and Mentally

Juvenile detainees are troubled in more ways than one. A Northwestern study of nearly 2,000 detained youths, ages 10 to 18 years, revealed that only 16 percent of those who had a major mental disorder received mental health services—either at the correction facility or in the community. "Interestingly, the detention center did a better job than the community services," said Linda Teplin, PhD, Owen L. Coon Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and lead author on the study that was published in the October issue of the American Journal of Public Health. About 15 percent of detained youths received mental health treatment in the detention center compared with about 8 percent who received treatment in the community.

Dr. Teplin and colleagues assessed the need for mental health services among male and female youths randomly selected at admission to the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center in Chicago. To determine who received services, they examined records from juvenile justice and public health agencies. This is the first large-scale prospective study of its kind.

The researchers found that significantly more girls than boys received mental health treatment. The demographic group least likely to receive treatment was African American males between ages 14 and 18 years. Although juvenile crime is relatively similar across race/ethnicity, the U.S. Department of Justice finds that, nationwide, racial/ethnic minorities constitute 29 percent of arrestees, 62 percent of detainees, and 60 percent of juveniles who are serving sentences.

Study investigators suggest that these disparities carry over to the provision of mental health services. "The challenge to public health is to provide accessible, innovative, and effective treatments to a population that is often beyond the reach of traditional services," the authors wrote.