Prison environment and health

Ginn, Stephen

doi:10.1136/bmj.e5921

Cited by 40 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 1 publication

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Both prison environmental factors and prisoner’s individual factors might explain the high prevalence rate and the severity of alexithymia among Chinese adult prisoners. Firstly, prison is a stressful place in which prisoners are foreboding from the outside and lacking opportunity to communicate with others [ 39 , 40 ]. For example, the inmate has only two hours each day to socialize with other inmates and only two hours each month for family visits, during which the inmate and family members are separated by safety glass [ 72 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and associated factors of alexithymia among adult prisoners in China: a cross-sectional study

Chen

You

et al. 2017

BMC Psychiatry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Prison is an extremely stressful environment and prisoners have an increasing risk of suffering from alexithymia. Therefore, this study aims to investigate the prevalence and associated factors of alexithymia among prisoners in China. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in five main jails of the district of Zhejiang province in China, and a total of 1705 adult prisoners ultimately took part in the study. Toronto Alexithymia Scale, Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck Hopelessness Scale and several short demographic questions were applied. Results: Over 30% of prisoners were classified as alexithymics and as high as 96.2% of prisoners suffered from at least one traumatic experience in their childhood, meanwhile, 81.5%, 53.4% and 85.8% were found to be positive for depression, anxiety and hopelessness symptoms respectively. Education, childhood trauma, negative emotional symptoms including depression, anxiety and hopelessness of the respondents, were negatively or positively associated with alexithymia among prisoners. Conclusions:The results indicated that high prevalence of alexithymia among prisoners is linked with their level of education, experience of childhood trauma and symptoms of negative emotions. Accordingly, the findings in our study can be used for prevention and intervention of alexithymia among prisoners.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence and associated factors of alexithymia among adult prisoners in China: a cross-sectional study

Chen

You

et al. 2017

BMC Psychiatry

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Obesity is a pandemic that is impacting health and healthcare costs of populations around the globe [ 1 – 3 ]. Prisoners, often referred to as offenders in the United States, belong to a population that spans the globe and share social, environmental, and health characteristics associated with the obesity pandemic [ 4 , 5 ]. For example, many offenders, regardless of the country where they are incarcerated, have the following characteristics: low socioeconomic status, limited access to healthcare prior to incarceration, substance use disorders, and greater probability of having infectious and chronic diseases [ 4 , 5 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Impact of Incarceration on Obesity: Are Prisoners with Chronic Diseases Becoming Overweight and Obese during Their Confinement?

Gates

Bradford

2015

Journal of Obesity

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Introduction. The association between incarceration and weight gain, along with the public health impact of former prisoners who are overweight or obese, warrants more investigation to understand the impact of prison life. Studies regarding incarceration's impact on obesity are too few to support assertions that prisons contribute to obesity and comorbid conditions. This study examined a statewide prison population over several years to determine weight gain. Methods. Objective data for weight, height, and chronic diseases, along with demographics, were extracted from an electronic health record. These data were analyzed statistically to determine changes over time and between groups. Results. As a total population, prisoners not only gained weight, but also reflected the distribution of BMIs for the state. There were differences within the population. Male prisoners gained significantly less weight than females. The population with chronic diseases gained less weight than the population without comorbid conditions. Prisoners with diabetes lost weight while hypertension's impact was negligible. Conclusion. This study found that weight gain was a problem specifically to females. However, this prison system appears to be providing effective chronic disease management, particularly for prisoners with diabetes and hypertension. Additional research is needed to understand the impact incarceration has on the female population.

show abstract

“…There is a disproportionate number of individuals with mental and somatic illnesses among persons in detention (Bhugra, 2020;Ginn, 2012). It is also known that infections which are transmitted human to human via droplet or close contact spread particularly well in confined spaces.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Caring for persons in detention suffering with mental illness during the Covid-19 outbreak

Liebrenz

Bhugra

Buadze

et al. 2020

Forensic Science International: Mind and Law

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Prison environment and health

Abstract: In the first article in his series on prison healthcare, Stephen Ginn looks at British prisons and at the unique difficulties of providing effective care to prisoners

Cited by 40 publications

References 1 publication

Prevalence and associated factors of alexithymia among adult prisoners in China: a cross-sectional study

Prevalence and associated factors of alexithymia among adult prisoners in China: a cross-sectional study

The Impact of Incarceration on Obesity: Are Prisoners with Chronic Diseases Becoming Overweight and Obese during Their Confinement?

Caring for persons in detention suffering with mental illness during the Covid-19 outbreak

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About