TY - JOUR
T1 - The Development of a Prison Mental Health Unit in England
T2 - Understanding Realist Context(s).
AU - Dyer, Wendy
AU - Cassidy, Kathryn
AU - Ridley, Louise
AU - Biddle, Paul
AU - McClelland, Norman
AU - Brandon, Toby
N1 - Funding Information:
The North East of England prison mental health unit (entitled the ‘Integrated Support Unit’ and hereafter the ISU) opened in October 2017. It represents a unique development across the prison system in England and Wales. The ISU provides a service for male remand and sentenced prisoners (adult and young offenders) with serious or severe mental illness (SMI) across the region (excluding high security prisoners based upon level of security). It is located on one wing within a North East Reception Prison (this prison experienced a major change of function in 2017 to become the first ‘Reception Prison’ under the Transforming Rehabilitation agenda: Ministry of Justice, ; HM Inspectorate of Prisons, 2017; IMB, 2018), and has the capacity to take 11 patients (single cell), plus two prisoner peer workers (sharing a cell). It is staffed by mental health staff Monday-Friday 8am-8pm and Saturday-Sunday 8am-4pm; and prison officers 24/7 and represents a significant collaboration between a North East of England NHS Mental Health Foundation Trust (hereafter the NE-MH Trust) and the North East Prison Service. The development is funded by the Northern Region Offender Health Commissioner, NHS England.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.
Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2021/4/3
Y1 - 2021/4/3
N2 - A pragmatic solution for the provision of care for prisoners with serious mental illness, who are often subject to delays in hospital transfer, is the creation of specialist prison units. This paper analyses the development of a prison unit in England for prisoners with ‘serious mental illness’. The unit was developed within over-lapping health and justice contexts, including expectations, pressures and priorities, which impacted on the outcomes expected and achieved. The methodology included attendance at Steering group meetings, analysis of a minimum dataset, and interviews with key stakeholders. A number of key sites of contestation are analyzed including: admission criteria; aims; activities; staffing; the physical environment; and discharge.
AB - A pragmatic solution for the provision of care for prisoners with serious mental illness, who are often subject to delays in hospital transfer, is the creation of specialist prison units. This paper analyses the development of a prison unit in England for prisoners with ‘serious mental illness’. The unit was developed within over-lapping health and justice contexts, including expectations, pressures and priorities, which impacted on the outcomes expected and achieved. The methodology included attendance at Steering group meetings, analysis of a minimum dataset, and interviews with key stakeholders. A number of key sites of contestation are analyzed including: admission criteria; aims; activities; staffing; the physical environment; and discharge.
KW - Prisoner
KW - Realism
KW - health and criminal justice context
KW - mental illness
KW - specialist prison unit
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85079836597&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/14999013.2020.1830890
DO - 10.1080/14999013.2020.1830890
M3 - Article
SN - 1499-9013
VL - 20
SP - 101
EP - 117
JO - International Journal of Forensic Mental Health
JF - International Journal of Forensic Mental Health
IS - 2
ER -
