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Physicians Need to be Advocates for Prisoners' Health |
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From EurekAlert! - Breaking News: Physicians are an essential component of correctional institutions and have a responsibility to advocate for effective and humane treatment for inmates. Citing the steady increase of incarcerated individuals in the United States that has resulted in record high inmate numbers, the authors point to the inadequate treatment of mental illness and addiction in the community as a source of the increase -- especially among women. "The natural history of untreated addiction and mental illness often results in illegal activity, and persistently inadequate treatment perpetuates a cycle of crime and incarceration," says Rich. The authors note that punishment is often favored over rehabilitation in many prisons, which may cause harm to a prisoner's physical and mental health. Federal prisons echo this trend with reports stating that of the 63 percent of inmates being held for drug offenses, only 15 percent participated in prison-based drug treatment programs. "Here, the basic requirements such as nutrition, shelter, and medical care would be provided, but in a more efficient, nonpunitive therapeutic setting. Initial reports analyzing the effectiveness of California's Proposition 36 estimate that over 150,000 people benefited from the treatment and that it saved taxpayers about $1.3 billion.
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