Summary

Drug addiction is a mental disorder in case of which, based on scientific research, the most effective measure to modify behaviour may be considered to be substance-specific, individually tailored treatment. In Estonia, however, just a small handful of people have been referred for treatment instead of incarceration.

The Centre for Applied Social Sciences of the University of Tartu was commissioned by the Ministry of Justice to conduct a study focused on the treatment and rehabilitation of offenders in Estonia. The objective of the study team was to ascertain the links between using drugs – illegal drugs or narcotics in particular – and crime among Estonian detainees; the situation of drug addicts in Estonian prisons; why offenders are not referred for treatment instead of being sentenced; what options exist for treatment in Estonia; and what the bottlenecks are in the treatment and penal systems for offenders addicted to drugs. The study also resulted in a number of recommendations to help improve the system. All of these issues are briefly addressed in this paper.

The results of the study indicate that the Estonian system for the treatment and rehabilitation of offenders does not meet the needs entirely. It is advisable to promote collaboration among people working in the treatment and penal systems, improve the quality of services provided and regularly assess the effectiveness of the services, assess the motivation to undergo treatment before incarceration and involve specialists in their respective fields (social workers, psychologists, case managers and others) in the penal system more.