Being in prison can take a serious toll on the psychological well-being of an individual. New conditions often develop, and pre-existing conditions may worsen. Sadly, many justice-involved individuals are released back into the community without ever receiving any type of treatment.
Mental Health in Prison
There are factors in many prisons that have negative effects on mental health, including overcrowding, various forms of violence, enforced solitude – or conversely, the lack of privacy – lack of meaningful activity, isolation from social networks, insecurity about future prospects – such as work or relationships – and inadequate health services, especially mental health services. The increased risk of suicide in prisons – often related to depression – is, unfortunately, one common manifestation of the cumulative effects of these factors. In some countries, people with severe mental disorders are inappropriately locked up in prisons simply because of the lack of mental health services. People with substance abuse disorders or people who, at least in part due to a mental disorder, have committed minor offences are often sent to prison rather than treated for their disorder.
Benefits of Responding to Mental Health Issues in Prisons
For prisoners, addressing mental health needs will improve the health and quality of life of both prisoners with mental disorders and of the prison population as a whole. By promoting a greater understanding of the problems faced by those with mental disorders, stigma and discrimination can be reduced. Ultimately, addressing the needs of people with mental disorders improves the probability that, upon leaving prison, they will be able to adjust to community life, which may, in turn, reduce the likelihood that they will return to prison. Moreover, for the community, prison health cannot be addressed in isolation from the health of the general population since there is a constant interchange between the prison and the broader community, be it through the guards, the administration, the health professionals, and the constant admission and release of prisoners. Prison health must therefore be seen as a part of public health. Addressing the mental health needs of prisoners can decrease incidents of re-offending, reduce the number of people who return to prison, help divert people with mental disorders away from prison into treatment and rehabilitation, and ultimately reduce the high costs of prisons.
How to Improve Mental Health of Prisoners and What Can Be Done
The detection, prevention, and proper treatment of mental disorders, together with the promotion of good mental health, should be both a part of the public health goals within the prison and central to good prison management. Some things that can be done –
- Divert people with mental disorders towards the mental health system, rather than prisons.
- Provide prisoners with access to appropriate mental health treatment and care.
- Ensure the availability of psychological support and prescribed psychotropic medication in prisons.
- Provide prison staff with adequate training on how to deal with mental health issues.
- Provide education and awareness to prisoners and their families on mental health issues.
Bigger changes are needed at the systemic and legal levels. Better access to mental health services overall may prevent crime. Treating people during incarceration and providing access to ongoing treatment after they are released may reduce recidivism rates.