Correctional centres (termed here 'prisons') are at high risk of COVID-19 and have featured major outbreaks worldwide. Inevitable close contacts, frequent inmate movements, and a disproportionate burden of co-morbidities mean these environments need to be prioritised in any public health response to respiratory pathogens such as COVID-19. We developed an individual-based SARS-CoV-2 transmission model for the prison system in New South Wales, Australia - incorporating all 33 correctional centres, 13,458 inmates, 578 healthcare and 6,909 custodial staff.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction: Correctional facilities are high-priority settings for coordinated public health responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. These facilities are at high risk of disease transmission due to close contacts between people in prison and with the wider community. People in prison are also vulnerable to severe disease given their high burden of co-morbidities.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Women in prison are a vulnerable group, often with a history of abuse, out-of-home care, mental health problems and unemployment. Many are mothers when they become involved in the criminal justice system and their gender and parenting related needs are often not considered. The aim of this rapid review was to thematically synthesize the existing research on the needs and experiences of mothers while in, and following release from, prison in Australia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPurpose: New South Wales (NSW) correctional system houses 30% of prisoners in Australia and at this time has only had a single documented case of COVID-19 amongst its prisoner population. The coordinated response by Justice Health and Forensic Mental Health Network (The Network) undertaken with the support of NSW Ministry of Health, in partnership with Corrective Services NSW (CSNSW), Youth Justice and private jails has ensured that the NSW correctional system has remained otherwise COVID-free.
Design/methodology/approach: A research study of how a range of partners which support the operations of NSW Correctional System developed an effective approach for the prevention a COVID-19 epidemic amongst its inmates.
Int J Offender Ther Comp Criminol
August 2020
Theoretical models of victimisation emphasise the importance of context. However, few studies have assessed the influence of prison environmental variables on inmate harm in physical assaults. This study used a multilevel model approach to examine individual- and facility-level factors associated with the incidence of assaults among inmates housed at correctional centres in New South Wales, Australia.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRetention of sex offenders to the completion of treatment is critical to program adherence to risk need responsivity (RNR) principles; however, it is also important to consider the potential interaction between attrition and treatment outcomes such as reoffending. The first aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of changes to treatment delivery in a residential sex offender treatment program (SOTP), including introduction of rolling groups and systematic emphasis on positive therapist characteristics, on likelihood of program noncompletion ( n = 652). Pooled regression modeling indicated that these operational interventions were associated with a significantly increased likelihood of program completion.
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