The Globe and Mail

The St. Lawrence Valley Correctional and Treatment Centre in Brockville, Ont., is a prison – but has none of the grim trappings normally associated with one. (Caption by Kirk Makin)

This prison's unique approach to treating inmates with mental problems is based on a ground-breaking contractual agreement reached in 2003 between Ontario’s Ministry of Correctional and Community Services and the Royal Ottawa Hospital. The brainchild of Ottawa psychiatrist John Bradford, the hospital agreed to supply doctors, nursing staff and treatment programs. The ministry supplied correctional staff and security. (Caption by Kirk Makin)

In this prison, bars, thick grills and uniformed guards are absent. Floors are carpeted and there is an abundance of natural light and soothing music. Most of the 100 “residents” saunter between their roomy cells and common areas. (Caption by Kirk Makin)

Psychiatrist Colin Cameron in the facility's rubber-walled isolation cell. Seventy per cent of those working at the facility are health-care staff, compared with 30 per cent security staff. The ratio is the opposite that of most correctional health-care units. (Caption by Kirk Makin)

The average inmate stays approximately four months and participates in a handful of the 30 programs available, including anger management, self-esteem, yoga, psychotherapy, relaxation therapy, medication management, and group therapy for sex offenders and domestic abusers. (Caption by Kirk Makin)

Staff psychiatrists, vocation officers, social workers, addiction counsellors and a chaplain focus on integrating offenders into the hospital community, not isolating them. “If you are very sick, you can see a psychiatrist seven days a week,” says psychiatrist Colin Cameron (shown seated). “We can get on top of things aggressively and quickly. Gradually, they integrate. Our goal is to get them ready to function in society and to have a quality of life.” (Caption by Kirk Makin)

The facility’s impressive record has drawn international attention. Less than 50 per cent of its ex-patients reoffend, compared with 92 per cent at other institutions that house similarly ill offenders. The only cloud in over St. Lawrence Valley is that it has a steadily growing waiting list of 50 - a distinct problem given that the province’s 8,065 offenders are serving finite sentences, after which they must be released. (Caption by Kirk Makin)