UNIT Therapeutic Community:
2 Challenges for Drug-
Involved Offenders
Unit Outcomes:
At the end of this unit, you should be able to:
2.1 Categorize the different stages of treatment for drug-involved offenders under the
community-based program;
2.2 Familiarize the guidelines observe in the handling of drug dependents inmates
with special needs; and
2.3 Provide reasonable solutions or recommendations on the underlying difficulties
and challenges faced by the personnel of the BJMP in the implementation of the
therapeutic community modality program.
ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
LET’S GET STARTED!
TASK 1: WARM-UP TEST
As you have observed with our jail situation nowadays there are a lot of
challenges that the jail officers are facing. With this, give at least 3 challenges that the
officers are dealing with and in each challenges give the possible causes why that
situations occur.
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ACQUIRE NEW KNOWLEDGE
Therapeutic Communities in Corrections
The therapeutic community (TC) is a total treatment environment that can be
isolated from the rest of the prison population -- separated from the drugs, the violence,
and the norms and values that rebuff attempts at rehabilitation. Like therapeutic
communities in free society, the primary clinical staff of the TC are typically former
substance abusers -- "recovering addicts" -- who themselves were rehabilitated in
therapeutic communities.
The treatment perspective of the prison TC is also the same, that drug abuse is a
disorder of the whole person -- that the problem is the person and not the drug, that
addiction is a symptom and not the essence of the disorder. In the prison TC's view of
recovery, the primary goal is to change the negative patterns of behavior, thinking, and
feeling that predispose drug use. As such, the overall goal is a responsible drug-free
lifestyle (De Leon and Ziegenfuss 1986; Yablonsky 1989).
The Staging of Corrections-Based
TC Treatment Based on experiences with correctional systems and populations,
with corrections-based drug treatment, and with the evaluation of a whole variety of
correctional programs, it would appear that the most appropriate strategy for effective
TC intervention with inmates would involve a three-stage process (Inciardi, Lockwood
and Martin 1991). Each stage in this regimen of treatment would correspond to the
inmate's changing correctional status -- incarceration, work release, and parole (or
whatever other form of community-based correction operates in a given jurisdiction).
The primary stage should consist of a prison-based therapeutic community
designed to facilitate personal growth through the modification of deviant lifestyles and
behavior patterns. Segregated from the rest of the penitentiary, recovery from drug
abuse and the development of pro-social values in the prison TC would involve
essentially the same mechanisms seen in community-based TCs. Therapy in this
primary stage should be an ongoing and evolving process. Ideally, it should endure for
9 to 12 months, with the potential for the resident to remain longer, if necessary. As
such, recruits for the TC should be within 18 months of their work release date at the
time of treatment entry.
TC treatment for inmates must begin while they are still in the institution, for
several reasons. In a prison situation, time is one of the few resources that most
inmates have an abundance of. The competing demands of family, work and the
neighborhood peer group are absent. Thus, there is the time and opportunity for
comprehensive treatment -- perhaps for the first time in a drug offender's career.
Besides, there are other new opportunities presented -- to interact with "recovering
addict'' role models; to acquire pro-social values and a positive work ethic; and to
initiate a process of education, training, and understanding of the addiction cycle.
Since the 1970s, work release has become a widespread correctional practice
for felony offenders. It is a form of partial incarceration whereby inmates are permitted
to work for pay in the free community but must spend their nonworking hours either in
the institution, or more commonly, in a community-based work release facility or
"halfway house." Inmates qualified for work release are those approaching their parole
eligibility or conditional release dates. Although graduated release of this sort carries
the potential for easing an inmate's process of community reintegration, there is a
negative side, especially for those whose drug involvement served as the key to the
penitentiary gate in the first place.
This initial freedom exposes many inmates to groups and behaviors that can
easily lead them back to substance abuse, criminal activities, and re-incarceration.
Even those receiving intensive therapeutic community treatment while in the institution
face the prospect of their recovery breaking down. Work release environments in most
jurisdictions do little to stem the process of relapse. Since work release populations
mirror the institutional populations from which they came, there are still the negative
values of the prison culture. Also, street drugs and street norms tend to abound.
Graduates of prison-based TCs are at a special disadvantage in a traditional
work release center since they must live and interact in what is typically an anti-social,
nonproductive setting. Without clinical management and proper supervision, their
recovery can be severely threatened. Thus, secondary TC treatment is warranted.
This secondary stage is a "transitional TC" -- the therapeutic community work
release center. The program composition of the work release TC should be similar to
that of the traditional TC. There should be the "family setting" removed from as many of
the external negative influences of the street and inmate cultures as is possible; and
there should be the hierarchical system of ranks and job functions, the rules and
regulations of the environment, and the complex of therapeutic techniques designed to
continue the process of re-socialization. However, the clinical regimen in the work
release TC must be modified to address the correctional mandate of "work release."
In the tertiary stage, clients will have completed work release and will be living in
the free community under the supervision of parole or some other surveillance
program. Treatment intervention in this stage should involve outpatient counseling and
group therapy. Clients should be encouraged to return to the work release TC for
refresher/reinforcement sessions, to attend weekly groups, to call on their counselors
regularly, and to participate in monthly one-to-one and/or family sessions. They should
also be required to spend one or more days each month at the program, and a
weekend retreat every three months.
Treatment of Drug Dependent Offender (Inmates with Special Needs) under the
Custody of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP)
Under the BJMP Manual Revised 2007 Edition, inmates with special needs
should not be held in jails with other “regular” inmates. This provision applies with drug
dependent offenders. However, given the reality of budget constraints, the increasing
inmate population, insufficient facilities and inadequately equipped detention homes,
Wardens and Jail Officers shall endeavor to provide the best arrangement they can for
such inmates, in keeping with this rule. It is assumed that the inmates have been
properly classified for the purpose. The following guidelines shall be observed in the
handling of drug dependents:
• Inmates found to be drug users/dependents/addicts should be segregated from
other inmates, especially during the withdrawal period, and close supervision of
inmates shall be maintained to prevent attempts to commit suicide or self-mutilation;
• Only qualified physicians shall prescribe sedatives/stimulants deemed
necessary for the inmate’s treatment and appropriate measures should be taken to
enable inmates to follow strictly the jail physician’s 13 advice regarding diet and other
medical interventions/treatments during the withdrawal period; and
• Regular searches of the inmate’s quarters shall be conducted and constant
alertness shall be maintained to prevent the smuggling of narcotics and other
dangerous drugs.
Treatment of Drug Dependent Offenders by the Bureau of Jail Management and
Penology and other Correctional Services, Parole and Probation Administration
Treatment of drug dependent offenders is the responsibility of the jail
management/correctional administration and the Parole and Probation Administration.
These agencies uniformly employ and administer Therapeutic Community Modality
Program (TCMP) in the rehabilitation and treatment of drug dependent offenders in
their respective custody.
Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP)
A. Performance and Contribution to Ease the Problem
The Bureau of Jail Management and Penology’s pursuit of excellence is
inspired by its acronym B.J.M.P, which unofficially stands for Best Jail
Management Practice. Best jail management practice is always given a
paramount consideration in its day to day operations and developmental plans.
Significantly, it is also where the BJMP’s role in the treatment of drug dependent
offenders comes into play. The search for the BJMP’S Nationwide Best takes
place annually to motivate all officers and members of the Jail Bureau; to boost
the morale and welfare of jail personnel and to strive for more accomplishments,
more innovations and best practices in response to the challenge of keeping the
rule in the treatment of inmates with special needs (like drug dependent
offenders) despite budget constraints, congestion, insufficient facilities and
inadequately equipped detention homes, wherein Wardens and Jail Officers
endeavor to provide the best arrangements they can for the benefit of their
clientele.
The BJMP is serious in its drive to accomplish its objectives and mandates.
Various policies and intervention programs were already implemented effectively
for the benefit of drug dependent offenders. Drug dependent offenders are also
considered “inmates with special needs” in the light of the BJMP Manual Revised
2007 Edition. Certainly, their needs are properly attended to; they are
segregated, closely supervised and monitored, referred to accredited physicians
for consultation and are given medicines.
In an effort of the BJMP National Leadership to make the life of inmates
worthwhile and productive while under detention or serving sentence and to
effectively treat drug dependent offenders, the Comprehensive Policy on the
Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation of the Therapeutic Community
Modality Training of the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology was regulated
through BJMP NHQ Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) Number 2010-01
dated 4 February 2010.
To strengthen the TC programme, another set of Policy Guidelines on the
Implementation of “Tagapangalaga ko, Guro ko” of the BJMP was also regulated
through BJMP NHQ Standard Operating Procedures Number 2010- 02 dated 15
March 2010. Its objective is to provide education to interested inmates who are
willing to continue their elementary and secondary schooling while under the care
of the BJMP; to mold and develop the inmate’s behavior through upgrading their
educational level while taking time in jail for them to be prepared for their
eventual reintegration into mainstream society.
As far as BJMP’S direction and in consonance with the Marching Orders of
His Excellency President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III, the BJMP, under the
leadership of J/Director Rosendo M Dial, CESO III, conceptualized the J.A.I.L.S
First Program. It is the BJMP’S Road Map for the next five years with an
extended timeline up to 2020. It’s an acronym of BJMP’S Commitment to the
Social Contract of the President. It means:
J – Jail Management and Services
A – Acquisition of manpower, training and seminars
I – Innovations and Best Practices
L – Logistical Support
S – Support from the Top
First Program
Note: “Support from the Top” means policies and legislation that need to be
institutionalized. These emanated not only from the BJMP leadership but also from
other departments or agencies of the government. BJMP is continuously and
passionately appealing to Congress for the passage of the Jail System Comprehensive
Development Bill or an Act providing for the Modernization of the Jail System and six
other priority bills.
In Region 6 (Western Visayas Region), the Regional Service Providers Council,
an implementing arm of the Adopt-A-Jail Program was able to forge partnerships with
various religious organizations. Its contributions had solidified the moral and spiritual
well-being of the inmates. It has been a catalyst, bridging gaps between inmates and
their families through regular visitation, fellowship and celebration of the Family
Congress.
B. DILG Support to BJMP’s Effort
Department Circular No. 2009-02 was issued, dated 11 February 2009, with the
Subject: Intensified Anti-Illegal Drugs Campaign in District, City and Municipal Jails.
This is in line with the President’s directive for the Government to intensify its anti-
illegal drugs campaign, and to eradicate illegal drug activities in district, city and
municipal jails, the BJMP is directed to adhere with this circular.
Underlying Difficulties and Challenges
Number of Drug Dependents
The available beds in government-operated rehabilitation centers are very
limited, in terms of the number of facilities and capacity for housing, and
require a monthly payment for accommodation, subsistence allowance, and
sometimes for medicines, thus, making it for difficult for poorer drug
dependents to avail of the treatment.
Some of the personnel running the programs in the treatment of drug
dependents are not trained for the job, especially in the implementation of the
TCMP programs. This creates invalid comparisons of the “approaches” they
are accustomed to. There are several privately operated drug treatment
centers that offer good services, but at an amount of money much beyond the
reach of the average Filipino family.
Number of Drug Dependent Offenders
There is a pressing congestion problem in almost all jails and prisons in the
country, be it under the BJMP, Bureau of Correction (BUCOR), or the
provincial jails, thus making it difficult to segregate drug-dependent offenders
from other inmates, although there is a clear policy on this requirement.
BJMP has a limited number of physicians and psychiatrists. They are
usually assigned to the National Headquarters and the National Capital Region
and the jails in the region depend on the initiative of the warden and
wardresses to remedy their plight and to collaborate with other government
agencies that are also mandated to treat drug dependents and drug dependent
offenders. Thus, there is Annual Search for the “Best Warden and Wardresses”
to acknowledge such initiatives. The budget allocation for medicine is very
limited.
Not all drug-dependent offenders receive treatment, even if treatment
services are available, due to the large jail population and limited personnel
tasked to give the treatment.
Implementation of Therapeutic Community Modality Program (TCMP)
Only a few selected personnel were trained on how to operate TCMP.
Only selected jails availed of TCMP, which is widely used in the
treatment of drug-dependent offenders.
TCMP that were started in the prisons and jails, likewise suffer from a
shortage of adequate facilities and unequivocal support from jail and
prison authorities.
Government practices, as applied to the BJMP, of constant personnel
reshuffles and career advancement through various avenues have
greatly hampered the implementation and development of TCMP.
There is skepticism of TCMP as an effective tool in the treatment of drug-
dependent and drug dependent offenders and “multidisciplinary”
approaches are considered better treatment programs than TCMP.
APPLICATION
TASK 2: FILL IN THE BOX
Direction: Write a brief and concise discussion of the treatment activities intended for
drug-related inmates according to stages.
Stages of Correction What is the Treatment Activities Conducted?
Primary Stage
Secondary Stage
Tertiary Stage
ASSESSMENT
TASK 3: WORK FLOW CHART
Direction: Formulate a work flow chart on the guidelines to be observed in the
handling of drug dependents inmates, provide a short discussion as to their roles and
functions. Arrange it using a “box” with a number to indicate the proper sequence.
Used the following as your Keywords:
Warden
Drug Dependents Inmates
Physicians
Jail/Prison Guards
You may click this link: https://tallyfy.com/workflow-diagram to help you in making
your flow chart.
TASK 4: PROBLEM SOLVING
Direction: Provide at least five (5) recommendations on how to solve the underlying
difficulties and challenges faced by the personnel of the BJMP in the implementation of
the therapeutic community modality program especially for drug offenders.
You may click this link: https://www.uen.org/rubric/previewRubric.html?id=13 for
problem-solving rubric
1. Inadequate Facilities and Budget (25 points)
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2. Jail Congestions (25 points)
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3. Personnel’s’ Training in Therapeutic Community Modality Program (25 points)
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4. Insufficient Numbers of Rehabilitation Personnel like Psychologist and
Physicians (25 points)
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REFERENCES:
1. BJMP Standard Operating Procedure Number 2010-01, Comprehensive Policy
on the Implementation, Monitoring and Evaluation of the Therapeutic
Community Modality Training.
2. Bureau of Jail Management and Penology Manual (2015) Edition.
3. De Leon, G. (2000). The Therapeutic Community: Theory, model and method,
New York, Springer Publishing Company.
4. Ramos, S.D.A (2019). The Recovery-Oriented Therapeutic Community for
Addiction: A response to Contemporary Substance Use Disorder Treatment in
the Philippines, Emerald Publishing Limited.
