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Globally, health problems are very common among prisoners. A mental state examination aims to help in recognising psychiatric problems among offenders and the possible association of these psychiatric issues with their committed crime. The legal-medical term “reduced criminal responsibility” refers to a weakened sense of reality and the ability to control one’s behaviour because of compromised mental health and without an evaluated need for forensic psychiatric hospitalisation. However, little is known about the actual need for the health care of prisoners with reduced criminal responsibility (PRCR). The purpose of this study was to explore treatment-related visits to prison by PRCR in Finland.

The research data comprise information on PRCR’s treatment-related visits and that of a matched control group (n = 222). Descriptive cross-tabulation with X²- and nonparametric Mann–Whitney U-tests and Cox regression analyses are applied.

The results show that almost every PRCR had at least one treatment-related visit during their sentences. Visits to a psychiatric hospital for prisoners, to the prison hospital and especially to a civil hospital are more common among PRCR. The need for treatment appears significantly earlier in their sentences.

These findings demonstrate the PRCR’s greater need for access to health services and the need for further development between the Health Care Services for Prisoners, Prison and Probation Service of Finland and public health and social services in Finland. More exploration of the medical reasons and locational distribution of the vast amount of civil hospitalisation is needed.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) goal to end the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic as a public health threat by 2030 emphasises the importance of leaving no one behind. To determine progress towards the elimination goal in Ghana, an in-depth understanding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care from the perspective of vulnerable populations such as persons living with HIV in incarceration is necessary. This study aims to explore the experiences of incarcerated individuals living with HIV (ILHIV) and on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in selected Ghanaian prisons to help inform policy.

The study adopted a qualitative approach involving in-depth interviews with 16 purposively selected ILHIV on ART from purposively selected prisons. Interviews were conducted between October and December 2022. Thematic analysis was performed using the ATLAS.Ti software.

Three themes were generated from the analysis: waking up to a positive HIV status; living with HIV a day at a time; and being my brother’s keeper: preventing HIV transmission. All participants underwent HIV screening at the various prisons. ILHIV also had access to ART although those on remand had challenges with refills. Stigma perpetuated by incarcerated individuals against those with HIV existed, and experiences of inadequate nutrition among incarcerated individuals on ART were reported. Opportunities to improve the experiences of the ILHIV are required to improve care and reduce morbidity and mortality.

Through first-hand experiences from ILHIV in prisons, this study provides the perception of incarcerated individuals on HIV care in prisons. The insights gained from this study can contribute to the development of targeted interventions and strategies to improve HIV care and support for incarcerated individuals.

There has been a move towards the implementation of digital/e-health interventions for some time. Digital/e-health interventions have demonstrable efficacy in increasing individual empowerment, providing timely access to psychological interventions for those experiencing mental ill-health and improving outcomes for those using them. This study aims to determine the efficacy of digital/e-health interventions for individuals detained in prison who experience mental ill-health.

A systematic search of five academic databases – CINAHL, ASSIA, PsycINFO, Embase and Medline – was completed in December 2020 and updated in February 2022. The review was guided by the Whittemore and Knafl (2005) framework for integrative reviews. A total of 6,255 studies were returned and screened by title and abstract. A full-text screening of nine (n = 9) studies was conducted.

No study met the inclusion criteria for the clinical efficacy of digital/e-health interventions in a prison setting. Subsequently, a review of the literature that made it to the full-text review stage was conducted, and gaps in the literature were identified to inform policy, practice and future research.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first integrative review conducted on the efficacy of digital/e-health interventions for mental ill-health in prison settings.

Young prisoners are one of the most vulnerable groups in society for mental health problems and ill-being. Therefore, there is a crucial need to understand their physical, psychological and social situations. This study aims to explore young Cambodian prisoners’ experiences and perceptions of mental health and well-being, their determinants and their coping strategies.

Six focus group discussions were carried out in three prisons with a total of 48 young prisoners between the ages of 15 and 24 years (50% women, 50% men). Semi-structured questions guided the discussions, and thematic analysis was applied to analyse the data.

Young prisoners reported multifaceted experiences of mental health and well-being. The majority described adverse mental health experiences, while some revealed better well-being, partly influenced by the socio-economic support from outside the prisons and previous involvement or not in drug abuse. The experience of physical overcrowding without emotional attachment among the fellow prisoners was perceived as the overarching determinant of loneliness and mental health problems, while socio-emotional support and rituals were described as the most important coping mechanisms.

This pioneering study from Cambodia gives young prisoners an opportunity to voice their experiences and perceptions of mental health and well-being in the prison setting. The findings in this study underline the importance of prison authorities tackling overcrowding to promote well-being and reduce mental health problems. Also, the coping mechanisms outlined by the participants should be considered when planning psychosocial interventions.

Internationally, rates of suicide and lifetime self-harm are higher in prisoners compared to the general population. This study aims to identify specific characteristics of self-harming behaviour and to establish a profile of prisoners who engage in self-harm.

Data from the Self-Harm Assessment and Data Analysis Project (SADA) on self-harm episodes in prisons in the Republic of Ireland during 2017–2019 was used. Annual rates per 1,000 were calculated by age and gender.

The rate of self-harm between 2017 and 2019 was 31 per 1,000 prisoners for men and six times higher at 184 per 1,000 prisoners for women. The rate of self-harm was twice as high among prisoners on remand than sentenced prisoners (60.5 versus 31.3 per 1,000). The highest rates of self-harm among sentenced prisoners were observed among 18–29-year-old men (45 per 1,000) and women (125 per 1,000). The rate of self-harm was higher among women prisoners in all age groups. Contributory factors associated with self-harm were mainly related to mental health but also linked to a prisoner’s environment and relationships.

There is a need to ensure access to timely and suitable mental health services, including both appropriate referral and provision of evidence-based mental health interventions to address the needs of these cohorts.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first national study to systematically examine incidence and patterns of self-harm among the prison population in Ireland. The recording of severity/intent of each episode is novel when assessing self-harm among the prison population.

This brief is designed to inform disaster risk reduction and management in Philippine jails and prisons. It draws upon research conducted in nine jails and prisons between July 2015 and January 2016. This research included 44 interviews with stakeholders, including inmates and prisoners, and nine focus groups with inmates and prisoners in different regions of the country. The research indicates that natural hazards are one amongst the many threats that inmates and prisoners face in their everyday life. Natural hazards are significant because inmates and prisoners are particularly vulnerable. Inmates' and prisoners' vulnerability stems from a thread of proximate and root causes that range from insalubrious and overcrowded facilities and limited resourcing from the government, to the neoliberal nature of the Philippine state. However, inmates and prisoners are not helpless “victims” in dealing with natural hazards. They display a wide range of skills, resources and knowledge (i.e. capacities) that are grounded in everyday practices and values reflective of the broader Philippine society. This policy brief finally makes some recommendations for strengthening hazard prevention, fostering vulnerability mitigation, enhancing preparedness, and reinforcing disaster management in Philippine jails and prisons. These recommendations emphasise the contributions of a number of stakeholders, including the active role of inmates and prisoners who are the first line of defence in facing disasters in jails and prisons.

This was a cross-sectional study to assess the psychological response to quarantine during COVID-19 pandemic and knowledge level about the disease among inmates of a Custodial Center in Enugu, Nigeria. A total of 66 new prison inmates were assessed for psychological distress using the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale (K10); and inmates’ knowledge about COVID-19 using a COVID-19 Knowledge Questionnaire developed by the researchers.

Participants had a mean age of 28.39±8.71 years; 63 (95.5%) were male inmates and 3 (4.5%) were female inmates. Sixty-one (92.4%) were awaiting-trial inmates, 43 (65.1%) had psychological distress, and 35 (53%) had completed at least secondary school. COVID-19 questionnaire mean score was 3.82±3.33. Thirty-one (21.8%) had adequate knowledge of COVID-19 (7-10 score), while 35 (53%) and 10 (15.2%) had poor (0-3) and average (4-6) knowledge, respectively. Adequate COVID-19 knowledge level was significantly higher among those that completed at least secondary school (48.6%) than those who did not (12.9%). Though not statistically significant, adequate COVID-19 knowledge level was commoner among those without psychological distress (43.5%) than those with psychological distress (25.6%).

Considering responses to specific questions contained in the questionnaire, knowledge about some questions was relatively high. For example, a majority of the participants 45 (68.2%) correctly responded that death can be a complication of COVID-19; whereas half of them 33 (50%) correctly responded that regular hand washing with soap and water can help prevent the spread of the disease. Nevertheless, responses to some questions showed poor knowledge about the disease as 18 (27.3%) correctly answered that COVID-19 can affect the lungs, while 20 (30.3%) correctly responded that COVID-19 is caused by a virus.

Our study highlighted the need to have all quarantined persons educated about the disease for which they are being quarantined. It also provided the opportunity to raise awareness of COVD-19 among the inmates.

Using a mixed methodology comprising interviews, case file analysis and descriptive statistics, this study aims to examine the experiences of all 43 young people in Wales subject to secure accommodation orders between 1st April 2016 and 31st March 2018.

Children in the UK aged 10–17 years who are deemed to be at a significant level of risk to themselves or others may be subject to a secure accommodation order, leading to time spent in a secure children’s home (SCH) on welfare grounds. Following a rise in the number of children in Wales referred to SCHs for welfare reasons, this paper describes these young people’s journeys into, through and out of SCHs, giving insight into their experiences and highlighting areas for policy and practice improvements.

Findings indicate that improvements in mental health support and placement availability are key in improving the experiences of this particularly vulnerable group of young people throughout their childhood.

Other practical implications of the study’s findings, such as improvements in secure transport arrangements, are also discussed.

While the findings are limited by the reliance on self-report methods and the size of the study, namely, the small number of young people with experience of SCHs who were able to participate, the findings build on the existing knowledge base around children’s residential accommodation and provide new insights into how best to support these children.

This study aims to examine the relationship between medication for opioid use disorder (MOUD) among pregnant individuals, referral source, mental health, political affiliation and substance use policies in all 50 states in the USA.

This study describes MOUD receipt among pregnant people with an opioid use disorder (OUD) in 2018. The authors explored sociodemographic differences in MOUD receipt, referrals and co-occurring mental health disorders. The authors included a comparison of MOUD receipt among states that have varying substance use policies and examined the impact of these policies and the political affiliation on MOUD. The authors used multilevel binary logistic regression to examine effects of individual and state-level characteristics on MOUD.

Among 8,790 pregnant admissions with OUD, the majority who received MOUD occurred in the Northeast region (71.52%), and 14.99% were referred by the criminal justice system (n = 1,318). Of those who were self-referred, 66.39% received MOUD, while only 30.8% of referrals from the criminal justice system received MOUD. Those referred from the criminal justice system or who had a co-occurring mental health disorder were least likely to receive MOUD. The multilevel model showed that while policies were not a significant predictor, a state’s political affiliation was a significant predictor of MOUD.

The study has some methodological limitations; a state-level analysis, even when considering the individual factors, may not provide sufficient description of community-level or other social factors that may influence MOUD receipt. This study adds to the growing literature on the ineffectiveness of prenatal substance use policies designed specifically to increase the use of MOUD. If such policies are consistently assessed as not contributing to substantial increase in MOUD among pregnant women over time, it is imperative to investigate potential mechanisms in these policies that may not facilitate MOUD access the way they are intended to.

Findings from this study aid in understanding the impact that a political affiliation may have on treatment access; states that leaned more Democratic were more likely to have higher rates of MOUD, and this finding can lead to research that focuses on how and why this contributes to greater treatment utilization. This study provides estimates of underutilization at a state level and the mechanisms that act as barriers, which is a stronger assessment of how state-specific policies and practices are performing in addressing prenatal substance use and a necessary step in implementing changes that can improve the links between pregnant women and MOUD.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to explore individual-level factors that include mental health and referral sources to treatment that lead to MOUD use in the context of state-level policy and political environments. Most studies estimate national-level rates of treatment use only, which can be useful, but what is necessary is to understand what mechanisms are at work that vary by state. This study also found that while substance use policies were designed to increase MOUD for pregnant women, this was not as prominent a predictor as other factors, like mental health, being referred from the criminal justice system, and living in a state with more Democratic-leaning affiliations.