“It was like you were being literally punished for getting sick”: formerly incarcerated people’s perspectives on liberty restrictions during COVID-19

Song, Minna; Kramer, Camille; Sufrin, Carolyn; Eber, Gabriel B.; Rubenstein, Leonard S.; Beyrer, Chris; Saloner, Brendan

doi:10.1080/23294515.2023.2180105

Cited by 9 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…Our findings are consistent with studies of COVID-19 response in the federal Bureau of Prisons (21) and in a national study of custody staff, incarcerated people, and medical workers (20). The lack of significant efforts to mitigate the isolation from families and lawyers was common elsewhere as well.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

“…Evidence of the unique interconnected health risks between custody officers and incarcerated people is situated within complex and often adversarial relationships (20). Nevertheless, there is still much to learn, particularly from the perspectives of those who directly experienced being incarcerated in the U.S. setting during the intense early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, but only a handful of researchers have assessed the perceptions of people directly impacted by these policies (21,22). To address this gap, we conducted a qualitative study to understand the lived experiences of formerly incarcerated individuals who were incarcerated and released during the COVID-19 pandemic in the state of Maryland.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Arscott

Doan

Dayton

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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BackgroundPeople incarcerated during the COVID-19 pandemic face higher vulnerability to infection due to structural and social factors in carceral settings. Additionally, due to the higher prevalence of chronic health conditions among carceral populations, they are also at risk for more severe COVID-19 disease. This study was designed to explore the experiences of people incarcerated in prisons and jails in Maryland during the height of the pandemic.MethodsWe conducted semi-structured phone interviews between January 2021 and April 2022 with ten individuals incarcerated in Maryland carceral facilities during the height of the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic and were subsequently released from prison or jail. We transcribed the interviews, coded them, and engaged in content analysis, an inductive analytical approach to developing themes and meaning from qualitative data.ResultsFour themes emerged from participants’ descriptions of their experiences: (1) distress from fear, vulnerability, and lack of knowledge about COVID-19 and how to protect themselves, (2) shortcomings of prison and jail administrators and other personnel through lack of transparency and arbitrary and punitive enforcement of COVID-19 protocols, (3) lack of access to programming and communication with others, and (4) absence of preparation for release and access to usual re-entry services.ConclusionParticipants responded that the prison and jails’ response during the COVID-19 pandemic was ill-prepared, inconsistent, and without appropriate measures to mitigate restrictions on liberty and prepare them for release. The lack of information sharing amplified their sense of fear and vulnerability unique to their incarceration status. Study findings have several institutional implications, such as requiring carceral facilities to establish public health preparedness procedures and making plans publicly available.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Arscott

Doan

Dayton

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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“…In this sense, health guidelines during the pandemic can be understood as a biopower mechanism, exercising control over the lives of prisoners and staff [13]. The findings highlight how COVID-19 disrupted previous roles and identities, challenging the power dynamics established in the prison environment as discussed by Foucault [42,43]. This situation has led to the emergence of new relationships and interactions between staff and inmates, with potential changes in the power structure.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The employee-inmate division and the perceived distance between these two roles are challenged when individuals assumed different roles or when similarities between groups are identified [42]. The COVID-19 pandemic fostered this division between staff and detainees, upsetting the previously existing balance between these two groups [42].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“Feeling Trapped in Prison” Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perceptions and Practices among Healthcare Workers and Prison Staff from a Brazilian Maximum Security Unit

Baccon,

Salci,

Carreira

et al. 2023

Healthcare

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The COVID-19 pandemic had several repercussions on prison staff, but the currently available evidence has mainly ignored these effects. This qualitative study aimed to understand the impact of COVID-19 on the prison system through the narratives of health and security professionals, using the methodological framework of the constructivist grounded theory proposed by Charmaz. The sample included 10 healthcare workers and 10 security professionals. Data collection took place between October and November 2022 through individual in-depth interviews. The data were analyzed using the MaxQDA software. Three categories of interrelated data emerged: (1) “Confrontation and disruption” caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the prison system; (2) “Between disinfodemic and solicitude” referring to the tension between information management and the practice of care centered on the needs of inmates; and, finally, (3) “Reorganization and mitigation strategies during the fight against COVID-19”. Continuous education and the development of specific skills are essential to enable professionals to face the challenges and complex demands that arise in prison contexts. The daily routines professionals had previously taken for granted were disrupted by COVID-19. Thus, investing in adequate training and emotional support programs is crucial to promote the resilience and well-being of these professionals, ensuring an efficient and quality response to critical events.

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“… 6 The lack of resources contributed to beliefs among some incarcerated patients that they were being punished and denied adequate resources. 7 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Allocating health care resources in jails and prisons during COVID-19: a qualitative study of carceral decision-makers

Doan,

Kramer,

Saloner

et al. 2024

Health Affairs Scholar

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COVID-19 created acute demands on health resources in jails and prisons, burdening health care providers and straining capacity. However, little is known about how carceral decision-makers balanced the allocation of scarce resources to optimize access to and quality of care for incarcerated individuals. This study analyzes a national sample of semi-structured interviews with health care and custody officials (n = 32) with decision-making authority in one or more carceral facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Interviews took place between May-October 2021. We coded transcripts using a directed content analysis approach and analyzed data for emergent themes. Participants reported that facilities distributed personal protective equipment to staff before incarcerated populations due to staff’s unique role as potential vectors of COVID-19. The use of testing reflected not only an initial imperative to preserve limited supplies, but also more complex decision-making about the value of test results to facility operations. Participants also emphasized the difficulties caused by limited physical space, insufficient staff, and stress from modifying job roles. The rapid onset of COVID-19 confronted decision-makers with unprecedented resource allocation decisions, often with life-or-death consequences. Planning for future resource allocation decisions now may promote more equitable decisions when confronted with a future pandemic event.

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“It was like you were being literally punished for getting sick”: formerly incarcerated people’s perspectives on liberty restrictions during COVID-19

Cited by 9 publications

References 19 publications

Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

“Feeling Trapped in Prison” Due to the COVID-19 Pandemic: Perceptions and Practices among Healthcare Workers and Prison Staff from a Brazilian Maximum Security Unit

Allocating health care resources in jails and prisons during COVID-19: a qualitative study of carceral decision-makers

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