How Greek Health Workers and Police View Mentally Ill Criminals

Have you ever thought about how people working in healthcare and law enforcement treat those with mental health issues who also happen to be involved in crime? Well, it turns out that many professionals in Greece have some pretty strong, and often negative, attitudes towards them. A recent study found that these professionals tend to see mentally ill offenders as both dangerous and unpredictable. This can lead to discrimination and unfair treatment, making it tough for these individuals to get the care and rehabilitation they need. The study looked at a total of 523 professionals, including doctors, mental health specialists, and police officers. On average, these professionals were around 41 years old and had quite a bit of experience, with about 40% having over 20 years on the job. They filled out three different assessments to measure their attitudes: one for their views on mentally ill offenders, another for their general views on mentally ill people, and a third to gauge how familiar they were with mental health topics. What did the study find? Pretty much everyone had negative feelings towards mentally ill offenders, regardless of whether they were healthcare workers or cops. This means that these attitudes are quite widespread among professionals who interact with this group frequently. So why does this matter? Well, these attitudes can really impact how well mentally ill offenders are cared for and helped to rehabilitate. It highlights the importance of professionals being aware of their own biases so they can provide better care.