PROVIDENCE – Formerly incarcerated individuals came together with a group of researchers, clinicians, policymakers and community leaders at a new symposium hosted by Brown University Health’s Center for Health & Justice Transformation.
The Health and Justice Research Symposium, held in late April at South Street Landing, focused on finding research‑driven solutions at the intersection of the healthcare system and criminal legal system.
A focus on perspectives from people with lived experiences in the criminal legal system served as “the principle that guided this symposium,” said Dr. Justin Berk, director of the Center for Health & Justice Transformation. “Panelists with lived experience of incarceration and reentry offer something data alone can’t capture.”
Attendees addressed issues surrounding community reentry, juvenile detention and diversion programs, and sought to identify barriers and future search and policy priorities and solutions.
“Rhode Island is continuing to demonstrate what becomes possible when rigorous research, lived experience and cross-sector collaboration work together,” Berk said. “The state has been a leader in the field of health and justice, and we can see where evidence continues to point to the next solutions and how these partnerships are needed to move that evidence into policy and practice.”
Findings from the symposium will be published in a conference proceedings article and white paper, the center says, with a goal of informing future research, policy development and implementation.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
