 The needs of prisoners are to be examined |
Two thirds of new prison inmates in Northern Ireland have the reading and mathematical ability of an 11-year-old or younger, new statistics show. More than 6,000 prisoners pass through NI's jails every year, and their needs are to be discussed at a healthy prisons conference in Lisburn.
Director of the Northern Ireland Prison Service Robin Masefield said healthcare in jail was not just a prisons issue.
He said the health and criminal justice sectors should cooperate more.
"People with mental health disorders should be cared for in the most appropriate location - not the most convenient one," he said.
Statistics from England and Wales indicate that nine out of 10 prisoners have a diagnosable mental health problem, substance misuse problem, or both, while four out of five prisoners smoke, compared to one in four of the general population.
The Promoting Healthy Prisons conference has been organised by the Health Promotion Agency for Northern Ireland (HPA) and the Northern Ireland Prison Service.
The event aims to raise awareness of health and personal development issues regarding inmates.
Dr Brian Gaffney, Chief Executive of the HPA, said the attention needed to be on the whole prison community.
"The factors that make someone more likely to re-offend, for instance, lack of education or employment, substance misuse, poor housing, and weak social and family links, are the same factors that contribute to poor health," he said.
"The healthy prison approach provides a valuable opportunity to improve prisoners' levels of learning and self-esteem, which can increase their capacity to reach their full potential when released, and as a result, reduce the likelihood of re-offending."
One-Minute World News 
News services
E-mail this to a friend 
Printable version 
