Reform of Italian forensic mental health care: challenges and opportunities following law

The Italian Parliament has recently made attempts to reform forensic mental health services in Italy and have decommissioned large forensic psychiatric hospitals in favour of small scale therapeutic facilities. The reforms aim to improve quality of care for offenders with mental illness, however, there are a number of challenges which mean that the reforms may have a negative impact on this group. This article reviews the opportunity and challenges that the reforms present and highlights the need to monitor the effects and unintended consequences on the care of offenders with mental illness.