State law specifies that a person suffering from a mental illness and who poses a threat to self or others, may be involuntarily committed to a state mental hospital for evaluation or treatment. 

Involuntary commitments require certification by two licensed physicians who are generally DOCR contract physicians; however, emergency room physicians may also be accessed in a crisis.    

Most inmates who are involuntarily committed to a state hospital are transported to either Springfield Hospital Center (SHC) or Clifton T. Perkins Hospital.  The hospital site is determined by the inmates required level of security. 

The DOCR psychiatric nurse coordinating this admission must obtain   pre-approval by the state’s Central Admission and Referral Center (CARC) prior to admission to any of these hospitals.