4440 Department of State Hospitals
Program Descriptions

15 - IN-PATIENT SERVICES PROGRAM

The In-Patient Services Program administers the California state hospital system, the Forensic Conditional Release Program (CONREP), the Sex Offender Commitment Program, and the treatment and evaluation of judicially and civilly committed and voluntary patients.

PROGRAM ADMINISTRATION

Program administration includes headquarters functions that support the state hospital system, including policy development and management, licensing oversight, patients' rights coordination, clinical oversight, and data management.

IN-PATIENT SERVICES

The state hospital system includes five state hospitals: Atascadero, Metropolitan, Napa, Patton, and Coalinga. In addition, this program includes two inpatient psychiatric programs, one at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville and one at Salinas Valley State Prison, which provide treatment services to California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation inmates. This program will also provide services to the new California Health Care Facility in Stockton which is currently under construction and scheduled to open in 2013-14.

Mental health treatment services are delivered by professionally trained clinical teams who provide full-time inpatient care to the most serious mentally ill and those incapable of living in the community. The DSH provides state-of-the-art mental health treatment services while balancing public safety.

CONDITIONAL RELEASE

The Forensic Conditional Release Program (CONREP) is the statewide system of community-based services for specified forensic patients. Mandated as a state responsibility by the Governor's Mental Health Initiative of 1984, the program began operations on January 1, 1986.

The goal of CONREP is to ensure greater public protection in California communities via an effective and standardized community outpatient treatment system.

25 - EVALUATION AND FORENSIC SERVICES

Evaluation and Forensic Services is comprised of the Mentally Disordered Offender (MDO) and the Sexual Offender Commitment Program (SOCP). The MDO program applies only to prisoners whose crimes were committed on or after January 1, 1986. Penal Code Sections 2960-2981 require that a prisoner who meets six specific MDO criteria be ordered by the Board of Prison Terms to be treated by the DSH as a condition of parole. Welfare and Institutions Code Section 6600 et seq. (Chapter 793, Statutes of 1995) was enacted effective January 1, 1996, establishing a new category of civil commitment for persons found, upon release from prison, to be sexually violent predators (SVP). The DSH has designated this program the Sexual Offender Commitment Program (SOCP).

30 - LEGAL SERVICES

Legal Services is responsible for a variety of legal issues, including representing the DSH in lawsuits related to government, constitution, employment, orders to show cause, conditions of confinement, involuntary medication, electronic convulsive therapy, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and fraud. DSH attorneys make statewide court appearances, draft regulations and advise management and staff on a variety of programmatic issues.

35 - DEPARTMENTAL ADMINISTRATION

Departmental Administration provides an array of services to support the state hospital system in meeting their objectives. Services provided include: budgeting, accounting, contracts and procurement, fiscal systems, information technology, personnel, labor relations, business services, local program financial support, and HIPAA.