Kendra's Law - Studies

Studies

As a result of the opposition to Kendra's Law, two studies were conducted on Kendra's Law. One was released in 2005 and one in 2009.

The 2005 study found:

Specifically, the Office of Mental Health (OMH) study found that for those in the Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT) program:

• 74 percent fewer recipients experienced homelessness;
• 77 percent fewer recipients experienced psychiatric hospitalization;
• 83 percent fewer recipients experienced arrest; and
• 87 percent fewer recipients experienced incarceration.

Comparing the experience of AOT recipients over the first six months of AOT to the same period immediately prior to AOT, the OMH study found:

• 55 percent fewer recipients engaged in suicide attempts or physical harm to self;
• 49 percent fewer recipients abused alcohol;
• 48 percent fewer recipients abused drugs;
• 47 percent fewer recipients physically harmed others;
• 46 percent fewer recipients damaged or destroyed property; and
• 43 percent fewer recipients threatened physical harm to others.

As a component of the OMH study, researchers with the New York State Psychiatric Institute and Columbia University conducted face-to-face interviews with 76 AOT recipients to assess their opinions about the program and its impact on their quality of life. The interviews showed that after receiving treatment, AOT recipients overwhelmingly endorsed the program:

• 75 percent reported that AOT helped them gain control over their lives;
• 81 percent said that AOT helped them to get and stay well; and
• 90 percent said AOT made them more likely to keep appointments and take medication.

Additionally, 87 percent said they were confident in their case manager's ability to help them—and 88 percent said that they and their case manager agreed on what is important for them to work on. AOT had a positive effect on the therapeutic alliance.

In 2009, an independent study by Duke University into alleged racism found "no evidence that the AOT Program is disproportionately selecting African Americans for court orders, nor is there evidence of a disproportionate effect on other minority populations. Our interviews with key stakeholders across the state corroborate these findings."