Staff members and people in custody at the Southern State Correctional Facility in Springfield reported high rates of suicidal thoughts, while morale among employees continued to lag, according to a new study released this week.
“What we’ve seen, at least in this 2022 data, is just it’s an environment that’s very stressful for staff and incarcerated (people),” said Abigail Crocker, a co-founder of the University of Vermont’s Justice Research Initiative, who helped lead the university’s participation in the study.
“The things that really stand out from the results,” Crocker added, “are mental health, the physical health, social health impacts, of working or being incarcerated in a facility.”
One of the “alarming” results of the survey, according to Crocker, is the rate of suicidal ideations for both staff and incarcerated individuals — measured at 30% and 37% respectively, she said.
“Those are really high in general and they’re high for incarcerated and correctional staff populations as well,” Crocker said.
The UVM’s Justice Research Initiative and the Washington-based nonprofit Urban Institute conducted the survey in June, with the results released last week.
The Urban Institute’s Prison Research and Innovation Initiative looks at conditions for people living and working in specific prisons, with Vermont being one of five states chosen to take part in the study.
A similar survey was conducted last year in Vermont. Many of the numbers in this year’s survey mirrored results of last year’s survey, with slight declines in some areas.
About 65% of correctional staff and 72% of incarcerated people at the Springfield prison submitted responses to the voluntary survey this year.
There are a total of 150 staff positions at the Springfield prison, with 105 of those filled and 45 vacancies for a vacancy rate of 30%, according to the corrections department. The prison, as of Friday, was housing 258 people in custody.
Findings among staff included:
- 75% strongly disagree that staff morale is high, compared to 72% in 2021.
- 100% of staff members surveyed agree or strongly agree that their co-workers show signs of stress, compared to 97% in 2021.
- 95% of staff members surveyed disagree or strongly disagree that the corrections department has a clear understanding of what it’s like for staff to work in this prison, compared to 89% in 2021.
Findings among incarcerated people show:
- 90% strongly disagree or disagree that they receive better medical care in prison than outside, compared to 88% in the 2021 survey.
- 85% strongly disagree or disagree that there are enough staff members to meet the current medical and mental health care needs of the prison, compared to 77% in 2021.
- 85% strongly agree or agree that there are a lot of times when there is nothing productive (or meaningful) to do, the same figure as last year.
“Not having anything to do all day doesn’t really help people get prepared for release,” said Crocker, the UVM researcher.
Corrections Commissioner Nicholas Deml said he was “disappointed” with the results, adding that in many cases the issues have been ongoing for “years and years.”
He said “we need to call out and be transparent” that the responses were negative in many categories “particularly when we look at wellness and mental health, both of our staff and of the incarcerated populations.”
Many of the problems highlighted in the surveys have been in headlines regarding the Springfield prison over the past two years, from staffing shortages to mental health care services.
Tracy Nichols said Thursday the latest survey results match what she has seen and been told about conditions at the Springfield prison by her partner, Jason Muxlow, who is incarcerated there.
“There’s such a lack of communication,” she said. “There is supposed to be rehabilitation but there isn’t.”
She talked about problems with medical care provided to Muxlow, who she said needs therapy following hip surgery, but is not receiving it; she fears his condition will worsen.
Nichols said she has reached out to lawmakers in hopes of getting the problems at the Springfield prison addressed.
“How do you get positive change when we are treating adults as kids?” she asked. “We put more rehabilitation into animals.”
Vermont Defender General Matthew Valerio, whose department oversees the state’s Prisoners’ Rights Office, said Thursday that the survey results did not come as a surprise.
“I think through the pandemic we’ve seen a rise overall of mental health issues and suicidal ideations and the like,” he said. “It’s a mirror of society. I think it’s probably more intense, more focused, when it’s a facility. It’s probably a greater danger.”
Valerio talked of a “collaborative study” his department is doing with the state Department of Corrections about increases in self-harm incidents behind bars.
“We all agree there is a problem and that’s why we’re looking at it,” he said.
Steve Howard, executive director of the Vermont State Employees’ Association, the union representing corrections staff, said he, too, wasn’t surprised by the recent survey results.
“(The administration) has not met the magnitude of the challenge at the department of corrections with the adequate amount of resources that it requires for it to be actually addressed,” he said.
“There’s a lot of tinkering around the edges, and a lot of political pontificating, you know, fancy plans, that in the end don’t end 16-hour shifts,” Howard added. “This requires leadership that just hasn’t happened.”
Deml, the corrections commissioner, said the department is taking steps in response to the survey results, including seeking a new health care provider with a stronger focus on mental health. Deml also said the department has rearranged staffing schedules aimed at providing a better work-life balance and has worked at boosting staff recruitment.
“We also know that this correction system is inherently a stressful environment,” Deml said. “We can’t solve it all, but we can mitigate a lot of it and address it as it’s happening, so that we can improve the situation for folks on both sides of that equation.”
