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Greener on the Outside for Prisons (GOOP) is a therapeutic horticulture programme targeting the high levels of complex health and social care needs in prisons in England. The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting lockdowns led to unprecedented disruption in prisons in England. This paper examines the experiences of prisoners both during and post-lockdowns in four prisons, to understand the effects of participation in GOOP on health and wellbeing after the disruption of restrictions, and identify implications for developing this programme further.

The paper is based on original qualitative data gathered from in-depth narrative-based interviews and focus groups with prisoners and staff in four English prisons. Audio data was transcribed and subject to a thematic analysis, drawing from a realist-informed lens.

Thematic analysis revealed five key themes: reimagining the GOOP context; increasing empathy between participants; building sense of coherence; reconnecting with nature and a joined-up connection with provider services. The main arguments centre on horticulture in prisons remaining under-utilised as a means of promoting good health and wellbeing, although there is enthusiasm from staff to provide green spaces for the most vulnerable prisoners and develop a range of mechanisms to connect people in prison with nature.

This paper focuses on new knowledge arising from an unprecedented situation in English prisons, from key stakeholders on the frontline of garden activities. Accounts demonstrate the extent of the health and wellbeing benefits of participation in such activities in this challenging environment, which has implications for practice for prisons more widely.

The purpose of this study was to research studies in the literature regarding the role of the occupational therapist within penitentiary facilities.

The study design is a systematic review using five different databases.

Findings can therefore ascertain the potential role of occupational therapists in penitentiary institutions because they can contribute to the rehabilitation of prisoners both inside and outside prisons with a view to their reintegration into society.

It is necessary for clinical practice, and especially to increase the health of people within prisons, to update the occupational therapist interventions in the literature that are effective within prisons.

According to this study, the intervention of occupational therapists in the prison setting reduces recidivism and contributes to social and work reintegration. This has positive effects in terms of costs related to incarceration.

Findings can therefore ascertain the potential role of occupational therapists in penitentiary institutions because they can contribute to the rehabilitation of prisoners both inside and outside prisons with a view to their reintegration into society.

Re-entry refers to the process of transitioning back into society after incarceration, and it is a complex phenomenon that requires further exploration. Therefore, this study aims to identify the readiness for re-entry among pre-release prisoners in Sarawak, Malaysia.

Using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory as the theoretical foundation, quantitative place-based research was conducted among 384 pre-release prisoners in Kuching, Sri Aman, Sibu, Miri, Bintulu and Limbang prisons.

This study’s results indicated that most respondents were Malay male offenders between the ages of 25 and 29, Malaysian citizens, single and had completed their education up to the upper secondary level. Most respondents had multiple prior convictions (52.3%), were convicted for drug-related offences (50.3%), had served sentences ranging from two to five years (56.0%) and were scheduled for release in 2023 (60.7%). The findings also demonstrated that factors such as personal development, perceived employability, social development and health development significantly predict readiness for re-entry among pre-release prisoners [F(4, 379) = 96.269, p < 0.01].

The findings of this study provide place-based evidence for the state government to understand the prisoner profile for further policy intervention measures and to enhance the personal development, perceived employability, social development and health development of pre-release prisoners. Given that most offenses were drug-related, it is crucial to highlight the state government’s need to invest in evidence-based drug treatment programmes. Synergy among different stakeholders is important to devise appropriate drug treatment programmes tailored to the current needs of the prison population to ensure successful reintegration into society and to actualise their potential.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research study conducted in Sarawak, Malaysia, that examined re-entry readiness among pre-release prisoners. It contributes to the knowledge pool by providing place-based evidence that takes into account readiness for re-entry among pre-release prisoners in Sarawak, Malaysia, from an Asian perspective to promote the attainment of SDG16.

This study aims to highlight prevalent misconceptions and stereotypes surrounding condom provision programs in prison settings and proposes solutions to enhance the availability, accessibility and quality of condom provision programs in prison settings.

Unprotected sex is a prevalent high-risk behavior and a major avenue for infection transmission in prison settings, worldwide. Despite this fact, many prison health policymakers exhibit hesitation in distributing condoms among people residing in prisons.

Common misconceptions and stereotypes surrounding condom provision programs in prison settings are presented and discussed in the text.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first of its kind presenting the prevalent misconceptions and stereotypes surrounding condom provision programs in prison settings and recommending solutions to address this issue.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) goal to end the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) epidemic as a public health threat by 2030 emphasises the importance of leaving no one behind. To determine progress towards the elimination goal in Ghana, an in-depth understanding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care from the perspective of vulnerable populations such as persons living with HIV in incarceration is necessary. This study aims to explore the experiences of incarcerated individuals living with HIV (ILHIV) and on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in selected Ghanaian prisons to help inform policy.

The study adopted a qualitative approach involving in-depth interviews with 16 purposively selected ILHIV on ART from purposively selected prisons. Interviews were conducted between October and December 2022. Thematic analysis was performed using the ATLAS.Ti software.

Three themes were generated from the analysis: waking up to a positive HIV status; living with HIV a day at a time; and being my brother’s keeper: preventing HIV transmission. All participants underwent HIV screening at the various prisons. ILHIV also had access to ART although those on remand had challenges with refills. Stigma perpetuated by incarcerated individuals against those with HIV existed, and experiences of inadequate nutrition among incarcerated individuals on ART were reported. Opportunities to improve the experiences of the ILHIV are required to improve care and reduce morbidity and mortality.

Through first-hand experiences from ILHIV in prisons, this study provides the perception of incarcerated individuals on HIV care in prisons. The insights gained from this study can contribute to the development of targeted interventions and strategies to improve HIV care and support for incarcerated individuals.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Aboriginal) people are overrepresented in Australian prisons, where they experience complex health needs. A model of care was designed to respond to the broad needs of the Aboriginal prisoner population within the nine adult prisons across South Australia. The purpose of this paper is to describe the methods and findings of the Model of Care for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Prisoner Health and Wellbeing for South Australia.

The project used a qualitative mixed-method approach, including a rapid review of relevant literature, stakeholder consultations and key stakeholder workshop. The project was overseen by a Stakeholder Reference Group, which met monthly to ensure that the specific needs of project partners, stakeholders and Aboriginal communities were appropriately incorporated into the planning and management of the project and to facilitate access to relevant information and key informants.

The model of care for Aboriginal prisoner health and wellbeing is designed to be holistic, person-centred and underpinned by the provision of culturally appropriate care. It recognises that Aboriginal prisoners are members of communities both inside and outside of prison. It notes the unique needs of remanded and sentenced prisoners and differing needs by gender.

Supporting the health and wellbeing of Indigenous prison populations can improve health outcomes, community health and reduce recidivism.

Only one other model of care for Aboriginal prisoner health exists in Australia, an Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation-initiated in-reach model of care in one prison in one jurisdiction. The South Australian model of care presents principles that are applicable across all jurisdictions and provides a framework that could be adapted to support Indigenous peoples in diverse prison settings.

The purpose of this paper is to examine lived experiences of opioid agonist treatment (OAT) during and immediately following release from detention in prisons in England and Scotland.

Surveys were completed by serving prisoners in both countries and by those recently released from prison (England only). The survey findings were discussed in focus groups of people with lived experience. The combined findings from the surveys and focus groups were shared with an expert group of prison OAT providers and people with lived experience with the purpose of making recommendations for more accessible and effective OAT in custodial environments and continuity of OAT on release

The quality and accessibility of OAT varied considerably between establishments. It was reported to be harder to access OAT in Scottish prisons. It was often hard for people in prison to get the dosage of OAT they felt they needed and it was generally harder to access buprenorphine than methadone in English prisons. Only Scottish people in prison were aware of long-lasting forms of buprenorphine. People in English prisons had mixed experiences of the help available in prison, with no improvement recorded since a 2016 study. People in Scottish prisons were more likely to rate the help available as poor.

The number of people accessed while actually in prison (73) was reduced by the impact of the pandemic, making it more difficult to access people in prison and because some were resistant to participating on the basis that they had already been consulted for a wide variety of research projects focused on the impact of COVID. The Scottish cohort (a total of 19 individuals comprising 14 survey respondents and five focus group members) is clearly too small a number on which to base robust claims about differences in OAT provision between the English and Scottish prison systems..

The study identifies key barriers to accessing OAT in prisons and suggests key components of more user-friendly approaches.

This study provides an overview of the recent lived experiences of people accessing OAT in prison and on release and offers valuable recommendations on how to make service provision more effective and consistent.

This study provides an overview of the recent lived experiences of people accessing OAT in prison and on release in England and Scotland and offers valuable recommendations on how to make service provision more effective and consistent.

Oral health is an integral part of general health. Different population groups have been assessed for oral health status in India, but still, many have been neglected; one such group is the prisoners. The prison population is a unique and challenging one with many health problems, including poor oral health, which may be due to lack of knowledge about good oral health practices. This study aims to assess effectiveness of oral health education on oral health knowledge, attitude and practices and oral hygiene status among the male prison inmates of central jail in Kolkata, India.

An interventional study was done among 240 male convicts. The data was elicited using a structured proforma; oral health status was assessed by recording OHI-S index, and the severity of gingivitis was assessed by recording the gingival index. Oral health education was delivered by using audio-visual aid. Oral health knowledge, attitude, practices and oral hygiene and gingival status were reassessed among the inmates before and after dental education at the end of three and six months.

A significant change in oral health knowledge, attitude and practices was seen, which in turn resulted in an appreciable decrease in the mean gingival index score (1.73 ± 0.382 to 1.20 ± 0.321) and OHI-S (3.31 ± 0.815 to 2.57 ± 0.551) in all the inmates after oral health education program over the period of time.

The oral health education with reinforcement proved to be an effective tool to instil good oral hygiene practices in the inmates.

A key aspect of psychologically informed planned environments (PIPEs), are the attachment theory-informed relationships between residents and staff (Bainbridge, 2017). The key-work provision of one-to-one support from officers to residents is one of the main ways through which relationships are formed. The purpose of this paper is to explore prison officers’ experiences of the key-work role within a PIPE in a women’s Prison in England.

Semi-structured interviews explored ten prison officers’ experiences. Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis.

Five main themes were identified; “Professional support”, “Negotiating Professional Boundaries”, “A Successful Relationship”, “Rupture and Repair” and “Growth for Everyone”. These themes reflected the framework around keywork; what support officers need to cope with the emotional demands of the role, and how to manage challenging situations and build meaningful key-work relationships.

Limitations include the lack of focus on diversity, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on officer experience and applicability to other PIPE services. Future research could address some of these limitations.

Practical implications highlight the need for consistent supervision, greater consideration of officers’ transition to the role and trauma-informed training.

The research provides an unprecedented account of prison officers’ experiences of the key-work role, adding to the limited literature within PIPEs in the women’s estate. The supportive nature of the key-work relationship was perceived by officers to contribute towards people’s sentence progression and officers’ personal and professional development.

This paper explores the role of accounting and accountability techniques in contributing to Australia’s border industrial complex.

We use the political thought of Behrouz Boochani to explore the role that accounting techniques play at the micro and macro level of his dialectic of alienation and freedom. Firstly, we explore the accounting and accountability techniques detailed in Boochani’s No Friend but the Mountain, which gives an account of his life in Manus Prison, and the accounting techniques he experienced. Secondly, we explore the discourse of alienation created within the annual reporting of the Australian Federal Government regarding the border industrial complex.

We argue that the border industrial complex requires the alienation of asylum seekers from their own humanity for capital accumulation, and that accounting and accountability techniques facilitate this form of alienation. These techniques include inventorying, logging and queuing at the micro level within Manus Prison. This alienates those trapped in the system from one another and themselves. Techniques also include annual reporting at a macro level which alienates those trapped in the system from the (White) “Australian Community”. However, these techniques are resisted at every point by assertions of freedom.

We illustrate the role of accounting in accumulation by alienation, where the unfreedom of incarcerated asylum seekers is a site of profit for vested interests. But also that this alienation is resisted at every point by refusals of alienation as assertions of freedom. Thus, this study contributes to the accounting literature by drawing from theories of alienation, and putting forward the dialectic of alienation and freedom articulated by Boochani and collaborators.