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The number of women involved in the criminal justice system is growing, yet few programs and services are geared specifically towards their needs. Moreover, even with gender‐specific programming, a risk management model (Andrews & Bonta, 1998) has dominated rehabilitation policy, where criminogenic needs or harm avoidance have been the primary focus. Development of a theoretical approach that embraces gender‐specific treatment and addresses the realities of women's lives is critical. This paper posits that the enhancement model (Ward & Stewart, in press) provides such a framework to guide the construction of rehabilitation programs for female offenders. This model moves away from focusing on criminogenic needs, and instead emphasises enhancing offender capabilities to assist women in living balanced and fulfilling lives. A review of female‐specific treatment needs encompassed within the enhancement model is therefore outlined, including issues of physical and sexual abuse, mental health, children and families, vocation, life skills and substance abuse. The integration of these needs into a holistic rehabilitation framework conceptually based on the enhancement model is then proposed. We argue that this framework is fundamental to reducing female recidivism, and improving women's wellbeing and overall quality of life.

s a consequence of adverse childhood experiences, offenders can develop mental health problems consistent with a diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD). This is characterised by difficulties with distress tolerance, emotional and behavioural regulation, and interpersonal skills, that often manifests as recurrent suicidal ideation and self-harm. The dynamic interaction between the prison environment, offender psychopathology and individual coping styles further elevates this risk for suicide and self-harm. There are few treatment programs with proven efficacy in managing borderline characteristics with the exception of dialectical behaviour therapy (DBT) developed by Marsha Linehan (1993a) for clinical populations. However, the development, implementation and evaluation of forensic-based DBT programs is in its infancy. The RUSH (Real Understanding of Self-Help) Program is a recent Australian DBT adaptation targeting vulnerable offenders exhibiting borderline characteristics. This paper provides an in-depth exploration of RUSH, highlighting the modifications made to the original DBT framework. Therapeutic obstacles associated with implementing RUSH in a correctional environment are discussed, together with successful strategies to overcome these difficulties. Finally, examination of quantitative and qualitative outcomes suggests that RUSH is a promising, holistic offender rehabilitation program targeting BPD characteristics and related problem areas.

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The association of depression and diabetes mellitus is supported by numerous studies, although the nature of this relationship is complex. In order to better understand this complex relationship, the present study sought to examine interrelations between depression, diabetes health outcomes, quality of life, treatment compliance, and psychological factors such as hopelessness, self-efficacy and self-perceptions in 50 outpatients with Type 1 diabetes (30 women, 20 men, median age 34 years). Participants with and without depression exhibited differences in expected directions on treatment adherence, quality of life, and psychological factors. Diabetic complications, overall adherence, and physical self-concept were significant predictors of depression, while depression was a significant predictor of overall adherence to diabetic treatment, and physical self-concept. Depression also exhibited a predictive trend with respect to diabetic complications. Finally, only physical self-concept was a significant predictor of quality of life. Advancing our understanding of the nature of the relationship between depression and health outcomes will be important in developing early interventions.