Psychiatric comorbidity and not completing jail-based substance abuse treatment

Many jail inmates have a history of mental illness, substance use, and drug-related crime. This article assesses the effect of psychiatric comorbidity on retention in jail-based substance abuse treatment. Secondary data from five jail-based substance abuse treatment programs were studied using descriptive and multivariate analyses. Controlling for age, sex, race, education, and program, the odds of an offender with a history of mental illness being terminated from treatment were nearly three times that of those with no such history. The data suggest that psychiatric comorbidity may be an important correlate of retention in jail-based substance abuse treatment.