William Elliott
Correctional Mental Health Care
William Elliott
PhD, CCHP
Dr. Elliott has honed his expertise in correctional mental health since the start of his career, when, as a newly minted MS in criminology, he became a counselor at the Rockville (IN) Training Center, a juvenile correctional facility.
He later earned a PhD in counseling psychology and began a trajectory that led him to oversee the work of countless mental health professionals in the Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Illinois and Indiana Departments of Corrections. During his 20 years at the U.S. Penitentiary in Terre Haute, IN, he rose to become Chief of Psychology Services, responsible for mental health services to adult males housed in minimum- and maximum-security facilities. At Wexford Health Sources, he became a regional mental health director for the Illinois Department of Corrections. Notable areas of expertise include statewide policies and procedures, psychological assessment, suicide prevention, crisis intervention, substance abuse treatment, sex offender treatment and curriculum development, residential treatment programs, clinical staff training, telepsychiatry, vendor monitoring, and interagency collaboration.
Currently, Dr. Elliott is an independent consultant as well as a national presenter for PESI, a nonprofit organization that provides professional continuing education. He has written a book and several professional journal articles on correctional mental health treatment.