JOCHS explores a promising approach for providing integrated health care services to juvenile offenders that maximizes the use of existing institutions and funding streams. It changes the opportunities available to juvenile offenders, a population that is frequently made up of low-income boys and young men of color. JOCHS views detention as an opportunity to provide youthful offenders with the health care they need – not only when they are brought to detention, but after they leave it, in the community. When youth have access to the health education, prevention, and treatment services they need, they are more likely to avoid the behaviors that lead to detention or recidivism.

The JOCHS approach to creating connectivity for juvenile offenders with community health services is based on research and observations of professionals in the fields of health care and juvenile justice. It is also based on the experience of our partner organization Community Oriented Correctional Health Services (COCHS), which works to create bridges between public health and public safety for adult offenders.

JOCHS is piloting its approach with partners in community clinics and public health, mental health, and probation agencies. Our guiding principles direct our work, which is simultaneously affected by issues of access to federal funding participation (FFP) under Title IXX of Medicaid, and state regulations that set minimum standards for operations in juvenile facilities.

The JOCHS approach is designed to connect all youth brought to detention with appropriate rehabilitative community health care services - whether they are detained or not - along the continuum of detention, and to continue to provide opportunities to access services upon re-entry into the community.