Exploring self-care abilities among women in prisons of West Bengal, India

Abstract

Purpose

Self-care is defined as the ability to take care of one’s body and health with or without the help of healthcare personnel. The purpose of this paper is to explore the opportunities for self-care among imprisoned women within the constraints of a confined life, which, in turn, affect their health.

Design/methodology/approach

Primary data have been collected through semi-structured interviews with 90 women in three prisons in the Indian state of West Bengal.

Findings

Findings reveal that a majority of the women cited the inability to self-care was due to factors such as constricted architecture, specific penal policies that thwarted relational contexts in prisons and also the loss of control over their consumptive choices. However, it was found that coping mechanisms also existed among some women who actively constituted penal spaces for self-care. Many long-term imprisoned women tried to actively engage themselves in daily activities such as the “labour” allotted to them.

Practical implications

The paper concludes that abilities to self-care have a deep impact on the health of women, which if not facilitated will lead to a health depleting experience. At a time when Indian prisons are focussing on rehabilitation, the recommendations for providing opportunities for self-care in prisons can minimize the “pains” of imprisonment and pave the way for rehabilitation.

Originality/value

The research is based on data collected during original fieldwork conducted in three prisons in West Bengal, India. It provides valuable insights on how penal environments affect self-care opportunities of imprisoned women.

Citation

Chatterjee, D., Chopra Chatterjee, S. and Bhattacharyya, T. (2020), "Exploring self-care abilities among women in prisons of West Bengal, India", International Journal of Prisoner Health, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 185-198. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPH-04-2019-0025