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This series equips medical, behavioral health, and service providers working with perinatal women/individuals with foundational knowledge on perinatal substance use disorders (SUDs).

Each year, the United States releases an estimated 650,000 inmates from prisons and nearly 13 million from jails. Many of these individuals are impacted by mental health disorders, and only some will receive proper discharge planning and information about accessing services after release. Improper care coordination, lack of support, and limited access to resources contribute to high rates of recidivism for individuals after release. This course teaches learners about the challenges faced by individuals upon release from incarceration and how behavioral health professionals can support them as they reenter the community.

First responders, including EMS (Emergency Medical Services), law enforcement, firefighters, and crisis hotline personnel, are often the first to encounter individuals in behavioral health crises. In these moments, behaviors like agitation, confusion, or withdrawal may be misread, resulting in unnecessary use of force, incarceration, or hospitalization.

This course introduces and expands on core de-escalation skills, offering relational engagement techniques to help you assess situations in real time, reduce harm, and guide individuals toward appropriate care. Whether you're new to de-escalation or looking to deepen your approach, you'll learn to read behavioral cues, make informed decisions, and use connection as a path to meaningful support.

Through real-world scenarios and development of strategies for building local resource networks, this training strengthens your ability to divert individuals away from the criminal justice system or the ER (emergency room) and into services that support long-term stability.

People who are incarcerated often face significant challenges when released, including limited employment opportunities, lack of housing and healthcare, as well as dealing with the social stigma and lasting impacts of unfair treatment in society. Reentering the community and reuniting with family can also be stressful for everyone involved. Training family members can positively influence reentry by providing you with the knowledge and tools needed to navigate the reentry process, minimize conflict, and create a stable, supportive environment for your family.

An estimated 1 in 69 adult U.S. residents were under community supervision at the end of 2021 (Bureau of Justice Statistics, 2023). Community supervision of justice involved individuals is an important component of the criminal justice system. This course equips Colorado parole officers, probation officers, and community correction workers with knowledge and skills to identify and address the behavioral health needs of individuals under supervision. Parole officers, probation officers, and community correction workers will examine how utilizing the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) Model in combination with tailoring supervision strategies can reduce recidivism. By leveraging community health resources alongside the RNR Model, officers can more accurately match individuals to appropriate services, reduce recidivism, and support safer, more successful transitions back into the community. This course will have an emphasis on identifying the Need and Responsivity Principles for effective matching of services and resources. Topics include recognizing co-occurring mental health disorders, substance use disorders, and applying trauma-informed care strategies. Upon conclusion of the course, participants will be better prepared to promote recovery in community supervision settings.

Mental and substance use disorders are more prevalent among persons in jails than they are in the general population, and people with severe mental illnesses are several times more likely to be found in jails than in hospitals. In Colorado, reports suggest that more than 50% of people in county jails have a serious mental illness. Nationwide, estimates suggest that approximately a million persons with behavioral health conditions are encountered by correctional staff across jails and prisons on any given day, and several million each year. Both people with and without behavioral health conditions exhibit appreciable rates of criminal recidivism following release from incarceration, and those with substance use disorders or co-occurring (substance use and mental) disorders tend to display the highest rates of recidivism.

The Risk–Need–Responsivity model (RNR) is a promising framework for reducing criminal recidivism in this population. This course equips Colorado clinicians in jail and outpatient settings with the awareness and knowledge needed to commit to RNR’s overarching and organizational principles as a foundation for services poised to reduce recidivism. Participants will also examine how to use RNR’s core principles to inform services. Additionally, participants will examine RNR’s structured assessment, program delivery, and staff practices principles to further inform how and what to assess, decision-making about the intensity of services, and how to effectively interact with clients and maintain them in services. Upon conclusion, participants will be better prepared to synthesize the philosophy of RNR with the values of the behavioral health system.