For some years, there has been a clear policy to divert the most
obviously mentally ill away from prisons to more adequate
specialist facilities, with some success. In the UK, a range of service
links between the judicial and the public health systems has led to
various arrangements for looking after the severely mentally ill,
although the prisons still shoulder much of the responsibility for
secure mental health care.3 Numerous men, women and children
suffering from a wide range of mental health conditions are still in
the criminal justice system. Within the sometimes overwhelming
burden of need for care within prisons today lies the on-going
problem of people with addictions to drugs and alcohol and with
very low mental health resilience, low self-belief and little possibility
of recovery without skilled help.
There is increasing recognition that prisons carry a considerable
load in these lesser forms of mental illness; conditions such
as depression, anxiety and stress-related conditions affect the
majority of prisoners.4,5 The impact of imprisonment on the mental
health of all prisoners should be better understood.
It is the authors’ belief that a new agenda for mental health and
prisons is beginning to emerge. Through better understanding of
the size and complexity of the challenge, collaboration between
expert groups, theWorld Health Organization (WHO) and research
bodies such as the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health concentrating
much of its efforts on the criminal justice system, it is clearer
what needs to be done. However, this still represents a considerable
and important challenge for prison authorities.2,6
For some years, there has been a clear policy to divert the most
obviously mentally ill away from prisons to more adequate
specialist facilities, with some success. In the UK, a range of service
links between the judicial and the public health systems has led to
various arrangements for looking after the severely mentally ill,
although the prisons still shoulder much of the responsibility for
secure mental health care.3 Numerous men, women and children
suffering from a wide range of mental health conditions are still in
the criminal justice system. Within the sometimes overwhelming
burden of need for care within prisons today lies the on-going
problem of people with addictions to drugs and alcohol and with
very low mental health resilience, low self-belief and little possibility
of recovery without skilled help.
There is increasing recognition that prisons carry a considerable
load in these lesser forms of mental illness; conditions such
as depression, anxiety and stress-related conditions affect the
majority of prisoners.4,5 The impact of imprisonment on the mental
health of all prisoners should be better understood.
It is the authors’ belief that a new agenda for mental health and
prisons is beginning to emerge. Through better understanding of
the size and complexity of the challenge, collaboration between
expert groups, theWorld Health Organization (WHO) and research
bodies such as the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health concentrating
much of its efforts on the criminal justice system, it is clearer
what needs to be done. However, this still represents a considerable
and important challenge for prison authorities.2,6
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