Editorial

Citation

MacDonald, M., Greifinger, R. and Kane, D. (2013), "Editorial", International Journal of Prisoner Health, Vol. 9 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/ijph.2013.62109baa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: International Journal of Prisoner Health, Volume 9, Issue 2

Welcome to issue 9(2) of the International Journal of Prisoner Health. As always, the issue includes papers that address prisoner health issues internationally. We are particularly pleased to present contributions from two countries that are rarely featured in international prisoner health literature, India and Indonesia.

In our first paper, Yvonne Maxwell, Andrew Day and Sharon Casey, in a general review of the published literature, consider the importance of understanding and assessing social and emotional well being (SEWB) in prisoner populations. With a particular focus on prisoners drawn from minority cultural backgrounds, in this instance Aboriginal and Torres Straight Islanders in Australia, the authors identify potentially important differences between groups of prisoners. Eight domains of SEWB are identified across which Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander prisoners, along with those in protection units, remand prisoners, and prisoners with intellectual disabilities or acquired brain injuries are likely to experience particularly low levels of functioning. The authors conclude that few programmes have been developed to address these needs, although attending to low levels of SEWB has the potential to make a positive contribution to prisoner health, prison management, and offender rehabilitation.

In our second paper, Charlotte Tompkins explores the cessation of injecting among male drug users imprisoned in England, with a view to determining what influenced this behaviour and why. Using qualitative data collected from male drug users on release from prison, the author explores the samples’ drug injecting behaviour whilst incarcerated. Not injecting in prison was identified as a pertinent finding and nine overarching themes accounted for this decline. Common among the themes were participants’ concerns about the health and social risks attributed to injecting in prison, alongside an appreciation of some of the rehabilitative measures and opportunities offered to injecting drug users (IDUs) when in prison. The author concludes that prison policy changes in prescribing and practice have contributed to evidence suggesting that prisons can be used as a time of reprieve and recovery from injecting drug use.

In the penultimate paper of this issue, Venkatesan Chakrapani, Ram Kamei, Hoineilam Kipgen and Jayanta Kumar Kh examine how IDUs in prisons in Imphal, Northeast India access harm reduction and HIV-related services. Drawing on qualitative data obtained from formerly incarcerated male IDUs a retired police official, a drug dealer and service providers, the authors report that illicit alcohol, injectable and oral drugs are available inside prisons. Strategies developed by prisoners to obtain syringes and needles are also described as are the difficulties faced by prisoners in accessing antiretroviral treatment and HIV testing in institutions that do not provide needle and syringe programmes, detoxification, overdose management or opioid substitution treatment. The authors conclude that their study illustrates, for the first time in this location, the contexts that underpin high risk injecting drug use behaviours among prison inmates in North-east India. It also illustrates the need to make harm reduction services available and demonstrates the difficulties faced by HIV-positive prison inmates in obtaining timely and uninterrupted antiretroviral treatment.

In our final paper, Zahrotur Rusyda Hinduan, Harry Suherman, W.J. Lucas Pinxten, Bachti Alisjahbana and Harm Jan Hospers consider the relationship between HIV/AIDS-related knowledge and prison officers’ attitudes towards inmates living with HIV in an Indonesian narcotics prison. From their study, the authors report that all domains of HIV/AIDS-related knowledge have substantial positive correlations with the prison officers’ attitude towards inmates living with HIV. The results indicate that the more knowledgeable the officers are, the less likely they are to respond unfavourably to inmates living with HIV and vice versa. The authors conclude, whilst acknowledging the limitations of the study that the knowledge gaps identified should be the starting point for the development of educational interventions for prison officers. In addition, robust policy and commitment from the prison authorities together with provision of educational programmes and the latest materials within prisons are required to help address the issue.

We hope you enjoy the selection of papers in this issue. As stated above, we are always pleased to present papers that address prisoner health issues from countries that have limited opportunities to address an international audience. This was, in fact, one of the motivations for starting the journal. As we consolidate in our second year with Emerald we, as always, would be happy to consider suggestions, and submissions, from our readership for future issues. We look forward to hearing from you.

Morag MacDonald, Robert Greifinger, David Kane