Understanding Mentally Disordered Offenders

I am conducting a piece of research exploring attitudes to mentally disordered offenders with the aim of beginning to look at how we can effect those attitudes by awareness raising and education.  

By investigating how the publics' attitudes to MD offenders can be changed, it is hoped that understanding of the issues facing these types of offenders will increase and lead to a reduction in fear and stereotyping.  It is important that this happens so that there can be an increase in the allocation of resources to helping MD offenders.  These resources could help to reduce re-offending rates, lead to improved public protection and a reduction in the cost of MD offenders being supported by the criminal justice.
If you have 10 minutes please take the survey by following the link below

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MDOffenders

Many thanks for your support

Ciara Wild BSc (Hons), MSc, MBPsS FPiT

Reflections upon Stage 2 Training as an Independent Practitioner

Reflections upon Stage 2 Training as an Independent Practitioner

Sally Lopresti, BSc (Hons), MSc, MBPsS, Independent Forensic Psychologist in Training

For the majority of Forensic Psychologists in Training (FPiTs), Stage 1 of the Qualification in Forensic Psychology is satisfied through completing an accredited masters degree programme in forensic psychology. A list of these courses can be found through the BPS website.

Stage 2 involves the submission of work for assessment. Two exemplars must be submitted for each of the four core roles. Alongside this work, daily practice diaries must be kept, including a log of supervision sessions. A competency log must be maintained and quarterly supervision plans written in collaboration with your supervisor. When you come to present core roles for assessment, a reflective account of the work must also be submitted.

As one of the first generation of trainees to commence the current route to chartership I was very unclear as to what my exemplars should ‘look like’ and what the benchmarks are for passing or failing submissions for assessment. This was compounded by my entry into independent practice in 2008, which meant that I had a much smaller cohort of FPiT colleagues to share experiences with.

In this article I hope to, through describing my own exemplars, offer readers examples / ideas of work that have been deemed appropriate for submission as exemplars of the four core roles. In a subsequent article I will outline the feedback received in each case from assessors.

Core Role 1: Conducting Psychological Applications and Interventions

Exemplar 1A - Conducting a range of structured risk assessments with prisoners to inform the Parole Board of level of risk of re-offending and outstanding treatment needs.

I submitted three case studies for assessment:

i)                    Case 1 was a Category C prisoner who had been convicted of offences relating to possession of child pornography. He also had some history of generalised violence. I was asked by his legal representative to undertake a psychological risk assessment in preparation for his client’s upcoming parole hearing. In order to assess levels and nature of risk and need I applied the Risk Matrix 2000 (RM2000), the Risk for Sexual Violence Protocol (RSVP) and the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE) Screening Questionnaire.

ii)                   Case 2 was also a Category C prisoner who had been convicted of the rape of an adult female. I was asked by HMPS to conduct a Structured Assessment of Risk and Need (SARN) following the prisoner’s completion of sex offender treatment and in preparation for his upcoming parole hearing. The individual appeared to experience some barriers to progressing in treatment, which I explored and subsequently made a recommendation for an assessment of executive functioning.

iii)                 The third case related to the provision of a psychological risk assessment to contribute to an offender’s upcoming parole hearing. The individual was a Category C prisoner serving a mandatory life sentence for the murder of an adult male. The offence involved callous and excessive violence. In assessing risk and need I applied the HCR-20 (Historical, Clinical, Risk Management) tool as well as the International Personality Disorder Examination (IPDE) Screening Questionnaire. In formulating the case I recognised symptoms consistent with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, which appear to have impacted upon previous treatment outcome, and so recommended assessment in this area.

Exemplar 1B - Undertaking treatment need analyses and/or individual treatment work with offenders with a view to further reducing their risk of re-offending.

Again, three case studies were submitted:

i)                    The first of these cases related to a Category A prisoner who had recently relocated to the prison estate having spent over a decade in secure psychiatric units. His convictions related to acts of violence with a strong sexual element. He also had an extensive history of committing non-contact sexual offences. I received a referral from Sentence Planning Board members to undertake a Structured Assessment of Risk and Need (SARN) in order to identify outstanding needs and make recommendations for future treatment avenues. This resulted in a referral to the Dangerous and Severe Personality Disorder (DSPD) service.

ii)                   The second case related to a Category A prisoner located in a Close Supervision Centre (CSC). He had requested engagement with a psychologist in order to explore his offending behaviour.  Having first had to demonstrate the feasibility of this work to more senior managers, I undertook six sessions of cognitive behavioural treatment exploring the function of the individual’s acts of violence and violent ideation, with a view to identifying pathways for future treatment and risk management.

iii)                 The third case study related to a Category C prisoner who had been precluded from attending HMPS’s Healthy Relationships Programme due to certain aspects of his offending. The independent psychology practice that I am associated with was contacted by the lifer manager at the individual’s prison and asked to undertake a risk and need assessment followed by a course of treatment to address risk of spousal assault, if deemed appropriate. Based upon the needs identified I subsequently delivered six sessions of cognitive behavioural treatment which were rooted in psychological theory linked to attachment style and patterns of violence akin to the client’s.

 Core Role 2: Research

Exemplar 2A - Assessing the predictive qualities of the Offender Assessment System (OASys) in relation to Psychopathy Checklist - Revised (PCL-R) score among adult male prisoners in HM Prison Service's High Security Estate.

PCL-R scores were gathered as part of the data collection stage of a needs analysis being conducted within HM Prison Service’s High Security Estate between January and May 2008. For each of the offenders for whom PCL-R score-sheets were available, full OASys assessments were also collected. Logistic regression was performed to assess the reliability of selected OASys risk items in predicting PCL-R outcome.  The discussion section of my research report outlined strengths, limitations and applications of the study and its findings, as well as directing future research.

Exemplar 2B - An explorative study of hopelessness and the effect of ethnic background upon level of suicide risk amongst adult male prisoners.

My aim in conducting this study was to identify whether previously reported differences between ethnic groups in relation to suicidality were upheld once a significant psychological factor – hopelessness – was controlled for.  The study drew upon data from a larger scale doctorate study with which I was involved. Data was collected over a three month period from prisoners within the first days of their arrival within a Category B prison.  This allowed researchers to measure psychological variables, including hopelessness and suicide risk, whilst prisoners were experiencing a period of particularly high risk of self-harm or suicidal behaviour. An analysis of covariance was conducted to compare the significance of two factors known to affect risk of suicide (ethnic group and level of hopelessness). As with Exemplar 2A, the strengths, limitations and applications of the study were outlined in the Discussion section of my research report, alongside directs for future research.

Core Role 3: Communicating Psychological Knowledge and Advice to Other Professionals

Exemplar 3A: Developing the contributions of psychologists to risk assessment and management at HMP X.

In December 2005 I started a new role as the Lead Risk Assessment Psychologist. This coincided with the initiation of processes by which a number of teams, including Psychology, Probation, Sentence Planning, CARATs and Offending Behaviour Programmes would all merge to become the Case Management Function. The new approach meant changes to the way in which psychologists contributed to sentence planning and risk assessment. I was tasked with conceptualising and implementing these changes. The most significant of these included:

·         Designing, implementing and managing the new OASys+ psychological risk assessment service.

·         Developing strategies for psychological input to RAM Boards.

·         Improving the quality of OASys assessments, through training and supervision of assessors and their supervisors.

Practice diary and supervision log entries demonstrated ways in which I developed new skills and knowledge in order to overcome, over time, difficult dynamics within the newly formed team so that I could deliver the psychological input that was required of me.

Exemplar 3B: Providing a psychological contribution to the selection of uniformed staff for HMP X’s Discrete Units.

In January 2008 I was temporarily promoted to Manager F and took the position of Research and Short Interventions Team Leader. The team’s primary purpose was to offer a psychological input to the establishment’s discrete units, including segregation, healthcare and the CSC (Close Supervision Centre). This exemplar focused upon two pieces of work that I carried out in relation to discrete unit staff selection. The first involved working alongside the segregation unit’s principal officer in order to develop a staff selection interview. I went on to interview candidates for officer and senior officer positions and subsequently provided candidates with written feedback on their performance in interview. The second project was carried out in collaboration with the CSC’s principal officer. In this case, we reviewed the existing staff selection process and updated it in order that it mapped onto the new Competency and Qualities Framework (CQF), which had been recently launched by HM Prison Service. This included developing a new interview schedule, in line with the competencies outlined in the CQF.

Core Role 4: Training Other Professionals in Psychological Skills and Knowledge

Exemplar 4A: Provision of training for new Focus facilitators.

This exemplar detailed my contribution to the professional development of Focus facilitators. Focus is a substance use rehabilitation programme that is aimed at providing intensive cognitive behavioural group treatment to prisoners with severe histories of drug and/or alcohol use. I was a Focus facilitator between January and August 2004. I was subsequently the programme’s treatment manager until October 2005. The exemplar outlined the way in which in 2007-2008 I was able to subsequently apply my knowledge and understanding of the Focus programme to support the treatment manager and wider treatment team at a time when professional development needs were high but availability of resources to address training needs was relatively low.

Exemplar 4B: Identification of training needs and consequent planning and delivery of training in anticipation of job role changes within Psychological Services at HMP X.

This exemplar demonstrated my competence in recognising a situation where additional training was required, liaising with key personnel in relation to the identification of training needs, design and delivery of training and, finally, evaluating the impact of the training. In September 2007 plans were put in place at HMP X to significantly change the way in which forensic psychologists in training (FPiTs) were able to apply their skills and develop professionally. Rather than being assigned a particular role, FPiTs entered a placement system, whereby they would change role every six to twelve months. This was with a view to increasing breadth of experience and learning in order to meet the competency-based approach to Chartership. In undertaking the work described within the exemplar, I provided key managers with relevant information regarding the team’s skills profile, allowing them to make more informed strategic decisions. I also assisted FPiTs and their line managers to anticipate training requirements in order that FPiTs could aim to address their skills and knowledge gaps prior to assuming a new role.

In my next article I will discuss the way in which my exemplars were presented for assessment, as well as sharing with readers the feedback received from assessors in relation to my submissions.

Research Particpation

I'll be the first to admit that this blog was not started to be used as a medium to gain research particpants however, as this is for Core Role 2a I think I might just get away with it.

The link below is for a piece of rearch exploring attitudes to mentally disordered offenders. 

It takes 10 minutes.

I would be very grateful if readers of the blog could take a few minutes to complete it.

Many thanks

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MDOffenders

Ciara

Securing a Placement for Training

Placements are one of the most necessary yet most difficult to access, aspects of forensic psychology training. In the prison service or secure mental health services you are able to access and work with the client groups but what do you do if you do not work in these sectors and need to gain experience?

Trainee counsellors and psychotherapists are required to have a placement and gain a certain number of client contact hours as evidence of experience. At the institutions they train at, they often have placement coordinators or a placements database where they can select and apply for placements. Many organisations will have placements that advertise for trainees and these can range from NHS to private such as The Priory, occasionally prisons, but also charities and private counselling organisations. Here, experience and placements are part of the training and it is made as easy as possible for trainee counsellors and psychotherapists to access a range of placements, gain a range of experience and accrue hours of client contact. Sadly as forensic psychologists in training we do not have these facilities especially for those on the independent route. So what can we do?

As mentioned in an earlier post, volunteering is one way of gaining experience with a client group, but what about learning about the services? What about more severe clients groups who are a better reflection of the type of client you will be expected to work with when you qualify? What about working with multiple agencies and staff teams in a forensic setting? These are all necessary for understanding and learning so it makes sense to try to gain a placement somewhere as a volunteer trainee.

Speaking to my supervisor I realised that most services won't take on a volunteer trainee for a placement without the minimum of a masters degree as they are asked so often by students and need to narrow the selection pool. Once you have these, accessing a placement should be easier but here is the next pitfall; what if they expect you to be available during the day but you work and cannot take time off for a placement? Quite a dilemma. This is not something I can advise about, merely something for you to consider when applying for placements. Below I have written a list of key points that I found helpful in applying for placements and getting responses:

Who to send it to?
Make sure that you are sending it to a relevant organisation and that you tailor your letter slightly to suit whether the organisation is public, private or 3rd sector.

Why their organisation?
Let them know why you are keen to work with them.  Is it their client group?  Is it there level and range of experience they can offer you?

What do you want from them?
Why are you approaching them, what are you hoping to gain from a placement with them?

What can you offer them in return?
The most IMPORTANT part.  What can you offer them in return.  Most places will want to know that you are capable if helping as well as learning from them.  Are you a good researcher?  Can you help with any research or evaluation they are trying to complete?  Perhaps you have developed and delivered training at your work and you are able to offer them free in house training that their staff might need.  Find what your strengths and experiences are and let them know how you can apply those strengths to benefit their organisation.

When are you available?
This is key.  Most places only have staff hours during the day when you can be supervised by senior psychologists.  When you are writing to organisations check if they are open in the evenings or weekends and let them know what you are happy to do.  Are you available on Saturdays etc?

Why you are applying?
You must be clear about why you are applying.  What is the Stage 2 Chartership?  Why does it require you to have a placement and how will it help?

Importance of having a supervisor?
You should have a supervisor.  This person is supervising your work and therefore a placement are gaining the benefit of you and your supervisor who will be ensuring that you are practising appropriately.
  
This blog post is in no way a dig at the DFP; I feel that the chartership process is fantastic at preparing trainees to work as forensic psychologists however I do feel that we could take a leaf from the book of the counselling and psychotherapy trainees. If there are going to be less trainee posts and assistant psych posts are too difficult to attain because of the number of applicants, then there should be some sort of database held within the DFP that has a list of services, number and type of placement available and contact details and trainees should be able to use that to apply for placements. This I believe would help both independent and non independent trainees gain the breadth and depth of experience required in order to charter. Trainees would feel more supported and hopefully be able to charter much more quickly than they are now.

Your thoughts and comments on this post will be most gratefully received.

Until next time.....