Health Equity and Criminal Justice: Addressing the Impact of Incarceration on Public Health

1. PUBLIC HEALTH PROGRAM CENTER FOR WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT & PUBLIC HEALTH PRACTICE 2019 INTRODUCTION TO MPH CONCENTRATIONS & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT DAY October 7, 2019 October 8, 2018

2. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE CONCENTRATION • Designed to address the impact of criminal justice involvement and incarceration on the health of individuals, families and communities. • The first graduate program in the U.S. accredited by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) to offer an MPH concentration in health equity and criminal justice • Focuses on the intersection of health and the criminal justice system and mass incarceration as a social determinant of health • Specialized curriculum centered on the criminal justice system, reentry and recidivism, and social and community impacts of incarceration

3. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE • United States incarcerates more people per capita than every other nation in the world • 5 times the incarceration rates of most industrialized nations despite similar crime rates • 2 million people are currently incarcerated - an increase of more than 500% over the past 40 years • Systemic racism and implicit racial bias plague the criminal justice system -Overrepresentation of people of color comprising 67% of the total incarcerated population, while only accounting for 37% of the US population • Sexually transmitted infections at the correctional level with the prevalence of HIV 2 to 7 times higher; 40% of incarcerated individuals are living with at least one chronic condition 4 times more common than in the general population Source: (The Sentencing Project, 2015; Wagner & Sawyer, 2018)(The Sentencing Project, 2015).

4. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE • Extends beyond individual-level impacts affecting families and communities by deteriorating the social pillars of education, employment, and economic mobility • More than 5 million children under 18 in the U.S. have had at least one parent who has been incarcerated. • The School to Prison Pipeline – on any given day 53,000 youth are held in facilities away from home as a result of juvenile or criminal justice involvement • To mitigate the impacts of the U.S mass incarceration epidemic, the HECJ Concentration will fill an educational gap and may provide an academic model for training a future generation of public health professionals. Source: (The Sentencing Project, 2015; Wagner & Sawyer, 2018)(The Sentencing Project, 2015).

5. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE • Contributes to the expansion of health-related research and policy development in the promotion of social justice and health equity across various sectors. • Addresses and advocating for the needs of populations that are involved with the justice system • Provides knowledge and the skills set needed for MPH graduates with clinical training to effectively and efficiently provide medical care for both incarcerated and post-release populations

6. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE • HEALTH EQUITY & CRIMINAL JUSTICE (HECJ) COURSES: • • Criminal Justice in Public Health (3 units) - Spring 2019 • • Criminal Justice Law and Advocacy (3 units) - Spring 2019 • EXAMPLES OF BREADTH COURSES (Required for Independent MPH Students ONLY): • EXAMPLES OF BREADTH COURSES (Required for Independent MPH Students ONLY): • Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Public Health (3 units) • Applied Public Health Skills (3 units) • Public Health Law (3 units) • Social Justice in Public Health Seminars (3) • Qualitative Methods (2 units) • Grant Writing (1 unit)

7. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICEFIELD STUDY • This course allow students to: • Apply their academic knowledge to “real world” situations that address public health issues • Conduct field work as interns at partnering public health organizations, which serve as field study placement sites.  • Assist community partners with specific public health projects and to promote and support the activities of those organizations that provide comprehensive health services to communities • Contribute to strategic resolutions, be valued by the Organization, and contribute to meeting its mission and goals • Help to build and strengthen working partnerships between field study placement sites and TUC. 

8. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE FIELD STUDY • 6 or 12-week practical experience in a professional setting (6 weeks for PA/MPH students and 12 for IMPH students) • Application and integration of skills and knowledge acquired during didactic coursework, translating that experience to programs, policy development, educational campaigns, and research that benefit communities that have been affected by incarceration. • Students complete a field study at either a California correctional facility or with community-based organizations that serve people with a history of incarceration, their families, and communities and focus on restorative justice and criminal justice reform through research and advocacy Field Study Intern (right) @La Clinica De La Raza Transitions Clinic, Vallejo, CA

9. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE FIELD STUDY SITES • CORRECTIONALHEALTH FACILITIES: • California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR): • SanQuentin State Prison, Corcoran State Prison Substance Abuse Treatment Facilities (Central Valley), Correctional Training Facility in Soledad • Solano County Jail Services • COMMUNITY-BASED NON-PROFIT/NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS: • La Clinica De La Raza Transitions Clinic, Vallejo, CA • Health Education Council, Sacramento, CA • Centerforce, Oakland, CA • Roots Community Health Clinic, Oakland, CA • Root & Rebound, Oakland (in development) • Students Overcoming Adversity & Recidivism (SOAR) • Solano Community College (in development)

10. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE FIELD STUDY PROJECTS La Clinica De La Raza Transitions Clinic, Vallejo, CA “My field study working with criminal-justice involved people in Solano County at the Transitions Clinic allowed me to experience the transformative power of public health in action. The Transitions Clinic model of a medical home for individuals recently released from prison is an innovation developed by public health practitioners to address the needs of this at-risk population. It is an inspiring example of what we, as MPH students are preparing to do. I am grateful that the curriculum at Touro gave me the opportunity to learn from this group and prepared me to contribute to their mission.” -Martha Benitez, DO, MPH Class of 2018

11. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE FIELD STUDY PROJECTS • Centerforce : Student assisted with administering and evaluating the organization’s Hepatitis C Virus Peer Education Program at San Quentin State Prison (SQSP). The program was funded by a 5-year CDC grant and designed to decrease incidence of HCV infections among currently incarcerated individuals. • CDCR - SQSP: Student was involved in preparation for the launch the Medication Adherence Pilot Program to track and report delineates specific consent, assessment, and laboratory parameters to monitor potential antipsychotic, anticonvulsant, and antidepressant adverse effects. • 3-Month combined clinical/PHFS rotations may be available to PA/MPH students at certain CDCR sites

12. HEALTH EQUITY AND CRIMINAL JUSTICE FACULTY Nemesia Kelly, MPH Concentration Chair & Assistant Professor Center for Workforce Development andPublic Health Practice Manager Gayle Cummings, MPH, PsyDc Program Director & Associate Professor Carly Strouse, MPH, DrPH Assistant Professor