Health and Health Promotion in Prisons (Routledge Studies in Public Health)
Contents:
Health and human rights in prisons
Social realities differed when prisoners were invited to discuss their perceptions of choice within the setting; however, prisoners tended to respond in two discrete ways. First, and as has already been alluded to, the prisons' structures, policies and regimes restrained and controlled individuals' capacity to make decisions.
From this perspective, the respondents implied that the setting offered relatively few choices and this led to reactions such as anxiety and frustration. Frequently, this frustration was amplified because prisoners argued that these choices could be freely made prior to incarceration, thus re-emphasizing their loss of power and displacement from society. Conversely, some prisoners suggested that the experience of being in prison provided a sense of opportunity that could be harnessed for personal development. This had some liberating and empowering effects, as several men were able to access more services and support within the prison than outside in the community.
Chronic recidivists suggested that the modern day prison offered offenders more choice than it has in the recent past: There's certainly more in prisons now than what there was … I can only compare it to when I was in last time which was twenty years ago.
Recommended For You
Obviously it's come forward leaps and bounds. Many viewed the setting as offering a variety of pertinent and applicable options for personal development and several prisoners suggested that they had considerable opportunities to learn new vocational skills and develop educational competencies.
This includes all prison staff see Chapter 10 , family members of prisoners and staff, and visitors, as well as the outside community into which prisoners eventually are released. Critical Feminist Perspectives 1st Edition. Whilst the concept of a health-promoting prison seems laudable, prisons are not primarily geared to improving health Smith, After the areas had been identified and agreed, participants were recruited using recruitment materials designed to draw attention to the research and provide some preliminary information of its overall aims and general purpose. After reading the recruitment materials and informing a staff member of their interest in the study, a total of 36 prisoners agreed to participate. Prison doctors should be able to work independently, and not as instruments of coercion within the prison system. Prisoners who relinquished their sense of personal control within the prison were passive and submissive, and comfortable in being controlled under the regime.
In some cases, prisoners suggested feeling socially excluded within free society, often commenting that access to training, education and health care was restricted by a plethora of barriers including stigma, financial constraints and transport issues. As opportunities to gain qualifications and skills in their home communities were often scarce, several men viewed the prison as potentially providing more options than they could reasonably expect to find outside in the community. Many recognized the need for the limits placed on individual choice whilst in prison, but also acknowledged that outside of prison there were similar constraints: I've done wrong I'm in jail … alright you can't make so many choices, but you haven't got that many choices anyway.
Most staff implied that individuals arrived into prison from deprived communities, often with no qualifications or occupational skills. Several staff were adamant that the prison environment was one of the only legitimate settings where these men could learn worthwhile competencies and to address their health-care needs. One member of staff insisted that the prison offered individuals relevant choices and opportunities, particularly in gaining accreditation and awards: Most of them [prisoners] don't have much in the way of qualifications when they come out of school, their opportunity is when they come to jail.
By design, imprisonment removes elements of control and choice from individuals; at least those choices which might endanger the public and jeopardize the safe running of the institution Pryor, This study clearly showed how control and choice were removed from individuals through the prison regime. The regime acted as a means of disciplinary power by imposing particular occupations and regulating the cycles of repetition Foucault, , causing anger and frustration in some of those interviewed. The example of prisoners reciting with precise detail their daily timetable and social conditions suggested that time in prison was cyclical rather than linear Medlicott, , demonstrating what Giddens Giddens, referred to as a discursive level of consciousness which inevitably compromised prisoners' mental well-being through repetition and monotony.
Indeed, Smith Smith, and Godderis Godderis, suggest that the removal of simple routine choices i. Foucault [ Foucault, , p. This finding resonates with the views of Wacquant [ Wacquant, , p. The findings reported here show that many men were not perturbed to be imprisoned as it provided respite and limited their access to drugs and alcohol. This consequently reduced the amount of substances they were able to consume in comparison to their life in the community. Thus as Crewe [ Crewe, , p.
The depressing irony, then, is that while some prisoners find drugs a respite from prison, others find prison a respite from drugs: The concern is that once released from the prison the majority of these men will return back to communities where violence, economic hardships and social problems may be re-encountered Woodall et al. The findings also showed some men were able to exert control in an environment where it is often assumed that control is completely removed. Structuration theory, proposed by Giddens Giddens, , is useful in examining how prisoners have agency the ability to act freely , despite the structural constraints imposed upon them.
Engaging in illicit drug taking, for example, demonstrated agency as it allowed prisoners some element of control and power over their situation. By drawing upon Giddens' structuration theory, a more fruitful understanding of resistance, control and power in the prison setting emerges. This kind of theoretical perspective rejects the explicit and implicit claims that prisoners are mortified and stripped of their identities as a result of imprisonment Jewkes, and conflicts with Foucault's Foucault's, ideas, where the power and agency of inmates are de-emphasized Carrabine, ; Sibley and van Hoven, The notion of choice in prison has also been explored and addresses Bosworth's Bosworth, argument that the concept has been neglected in relation to imprisonment.
These findings challenge previous understanding and demonstrate a more nuanced view of choice in category-C prisons. For example, pre-prison backgrounds and social circumstances played a role in the men's negotiation of prison life and the perception of choice within the institution. Frequently, individuals from deprived backgrounds found the selections presented to them inside the prison as being beneficial in improving their personal development and supportive of their rehabilitation.
Fundamental values within health promotion, such as control, choice and empowerment, are often perceived to be obstructed within prisons as these collide with security imperatives.
- Health and human rights in prisons - ICRC?
- Dr Nick de Viggiani.
- Origine du nom de famille BARGE (Oeuvres courtes) (French Edition).
- 1st Edition.
- Science of Man - 1876 and 1883.
- Choosing the Better Part: Anna Maria van Schurman (1607–1678) (International Archives of the History of Ideas Archives internationales dhistoire des idées);
- Lets Get It Started (Lets Get Funny Fiction);
This study revealed the multiple ways in which control and choice were withdrawn from individuals through various structural constraints, revealing the immense power inequalities between the prisoner and the system. However, it also showed a more nuanced understanding of how control and choice within prison is experienced. If prisons are to embrace health promotion and support a settings approach, then adopting core values is critical to attaining this. Within the prison context, this is difficult to evade as prisons must keep the public protected.
Empowerment is central to becoming the author of one's own life and being able to control the forces that exist in pathogenic and criminogenic environments. The paradox is that prisons are by their nature disempowering yet are tasked with creating more empowered individuals capable of taking control of their lives on release.
Health and Health Promotion in Prisons
Partnership working is critical to the settings-based approach within health promotion Scriven, and a major challenge to addressing the problems prisoners face on release is to facilitate connections with other settings. Solidifying and establishing links between the prison and community organizations are, therefore, crucial to the overall success of public health efforts with this socially excluded sub-section of the population. This signifies the need to consider a joined-up settings approach, where the prison setting is not considered as a detached organization, but exists as part of a wider interconnected social system Naidoo and Wills, ; Corcoran and Bone, This paper explored how two concepts central to health promotion discourse currently apply in the context of imprisonment in three prisons in England.
Some have argued that England and Wales lead Europe in policy developments and integration between prison and public health services Gatherer and Fraser, , and so the findings presented here may not be representative of the situation in other countries where policy and practice may be less well developed Casey and Mannix McNamara, Nevertheless, the paper is timely given that calls have been made more generally to re-examine health promotion efforts in prison Douglas et al. The health-promoting prison is, in comparison to other settings for health promotion, still in its infancy.
Major developments have been achieved so far, mainly under the leadership of WHO Europe. However, if a settings approach in prison is truly to move forward, both conceptually and practically, then health promoters should seek to embed the key values of health promotion within the prison setting. A contemporary prison system, embracing the values of health promotion and the settings approach, should embrace the former rather than the latter and equip individuals with the necessary skills to reintegrate successfully back into society. Prisoners often wish to take control and make choices which are beneficial for their own health and rehabilitation and yet systemic barriers can inhibit such decisions.
Conditions in the prison setting must empower prisoners through offering responsibilities, choice and control over their long-term rehabilitation process rather than deskilling and disempowering those who are imprisoned. Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. Sign In or Create an Account. Close mobile search navigation Article navigation. Control and choice in English prisons: Tobacco has become one of the most widely used and traded commoditites on the planet.
Reflecting contemporary anthropological interest in material culture studies, Anthropology of Tobacco makes the plant the centre of its own, contentious, global story in which, instead of a passive commodity, Recent epidemics have prompted large-scale international interventions, aimed at mitigating the spread of disease in a globalized world.
With this context in mind, Women's Health and Complementary and Integrative Medicine constitutes a valuable and timely resource for those looking to The past decade has witnessed a significant increase in the construction of health as a security issue by national governments and multilateral organizations. This book provides the first critical, feminist analysis of the flesh-and-blood impacts of the securitization of health on different bodies, Covering a period stretching from the late nineteenth century to the present day, this book The impact of the United Nations "Healthy Prisons" initiative has highlighted the importance of health and health promotion in incarcerated populations.
This invaluable book discusses the many health and medical issues that arise or are introduced into prisons from the perspective of both inmates Global Health Disputes and Disparities explores inequalities in health around the world, looking particularly at the opportunity for, and limitations of, international law to promote population health by examining its intersection with human rights, trade, and epidemiology, and the controversial This collection develops a comprehensive public health approach for working with gender-based violence, paying specific attention to Capacity building — which focuses on understanding the obstacles that prevent organisations from realising their goals, while promoting those features that help them to achieve measurable and sustainable results — is vital to improve the delivery of health care in both developed and developing Clare Herrick, David Reubi March 06, To date, geography has not yet carved out a disciplinary niche within the diffuse domain that constitutes global health.
However, the compulsion to do and understand global health emerges largely from contexts that geography has long engaged with: A Brief Historical Perspective 3. Approaching Health and Human Rights in Prison: The Resurrection of the Body in Penology: Examining the Principles of Prison Health Care 6.
The TECH model 9. Mental Health and Treatment in Prisons: Hospitals of Last Resort or Rehabilitation? Learn More about VitalSource Bookshelf.