Correctional Mental Health: From Theory to Best Practice

About

Thomas J. Fagan Ph.D. is currently an Associate Professor of Psychology and the Director of the Division of Social and Behavioral Science at Nova Southeastern University in Ft. Lauderdale Florida. For 23 years he was a psychology practitioner and administrator with the Federal Bureau of Prisons where he was an active participant in developing correctional mental health programs creating mental health policies and procedures and training professional paraprofessional and correctional staff. Dr. Fagan was also the Bureaus Chief hostage negotiator and coordinator of its crisis negotiation training program. Over the years he has served as a consultant to numerous federal state and local law enforcement agencies in the areas of crisis negotiation critical incident stress debriefing and management of correctional mental health services and programs. Dr. Fagan has published regularly in correctional and psychological journals has authored several book chapters and co-edited two books with Robert K. Ax Ph.D. -Correctional Mental Health Handbook (2003) and Corrections Mental Health and Social Policy: International Perspectives (2007). He also published a book on crisis negotiation in correctional settings - Negotiating Correctional Incidents: A Practical Guide (2003). Since 1997 Dr. Fagan has served as the American Psychological Association (APA)s representative on the Board of Directors of the National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) a national organization dedicated to insuring quality health and mental health care to incarcerated individuals. He served as NCCHCs Board Chair from 2002 - 2003. He is a Fellow in APAs Divisions 12 and 18. Division 18 recognized his work in correctional mental health with a special achievement award in 1993 and he received APAs Award for Distinguished Contributions to Practice in the Public Sector in 2006. He received is Bachelors degree from Rutgers University and his Masters and Doctoral Degrees from Virginia Tech. Robert K. Ax Ph.D. received his doctorate in clinical psychology from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and practiced in state and federal corrections for more than 20 years. He is a licensed clinical psychologist (Virginia) a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA) a member of the Canadian Psychological Association (CPA) and a former President of the APA Division of Psychologists in Public Service (18). He has twice been the recipient of Division 18s Distinguished Service Award and in 2009 received its highest honor the Harold Hildreth Award. He was the training director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons first APA-accredited internship program at the Federal Correctional Institution Petersburg Virginia. Dr. Ax is the co-editor with Dr. Thomas J. Fagan of two previous volumes the Correctional Mental Health Handbook published by Sage in 2003 and Corrections Mental Health and Social Policy: International Perspectives (Charles C Thomas 2007). He has published articles on mental health training and correctional issues currently serves on the editorial board of the journal Criminal Justice and Behavior and has served as an invited reviewer for other journals including American Psychologist Psychological Services and Professional Psychology: Research and Practice. Dr. Ax has published several articles on organized psychologys prescriptive authority initiative as well. He delivered an invited address on this issue at the annual CPA convention in 2008 and served as a content expert (1998-1999) for the development of the APA College of Professional Psychologys Psychopharmacology Examination for Psychologists. Dr. Ax received the American Society for the Advancement of Pharmacotherapys (APAs Division 55) National Leadership Award in 2006.