Paths to Improving Pandemic Preparedness in Jails and Prisons: Perspectives of Incarcerated People and Correctional Staff

Puglisi, Lisa; Rosenberg, Alana; Credle, Marisol; Negron, Tino; Martin, Rosemarie A.; Maner, Morgan; Brinkley‐Rubinstein, Lauren; Wang, Emily A.

doi:10.2105/ajph.2022.306956

Cited by 12 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“…Our findings are consistent with studies of COVID-19 response in the federal Bureau of Prisons (21) and in a national study of custody staff, incarcerated people, and medical workers (20). The lack of significant efforts to mitigate the isolation from families and lawyers was common elsewhere as well.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

“…Our study shows that people incarcerated during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic experienced profound distress and fear. In particular, the built-in restrictions on incarcerated people's abilities to freely access information and control their living space cultivated a sense, often accurate, that prison and jail officials were inconsistently implementing COVID-19 protocols (20,29). Our study also showed that re-entry planning disappeared and created new challenges to reintegration.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…Evidence of the unique interconnected health risks between custody officers and incarcerated people is situated within complex and often adversarial relationships (20). Nevertheless, there is still much to learn, particularly from the perspectives of those who directly experienced being incarcerated in the U.S. setting during the intense early phase of the COVID-19 pandemic, but only a handful of researchers have assessed the perceptions of people directly impacted by these policies (21,22).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Arscott

Doan

Dayton

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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BackgroundPeople incarcerated during the COVID-19 pandemic face higher vulnerability to infection due to structural and social factors in carceral settings. Additionally, due to the higher prevalence of chronic health conditions among carceral populations, they are also at risk for more severe COVID-19 disease. This study was designed to explore the experiences of people incarcerated in prisons and jails in Maryland during the height of the pandemic.MethodsWe conducted semi-structured phone interviews between January 2021 and April 2022 with ten individuals incarcerated in Maryland carceral facilities during the height of the U.S. COVID-19 pandemic and were subsequently released from prison or jail. We transcribed the interviews, coded them, and engaged in content analysis, an inductive analytical approach to developing themes and meaning from qualitative data.ResultsFour themes emerged from participants’ descriptions of their experiences: (1) distress from fear, vulnerability, and lack of knowledge about COVID-19 and how to protect themselves, (2) shortcomings of prison and jail administrators and other personnel through lack of transparency and arbitrary and punitive enforcement of COVID-19 protocols, (3) lack of access to programming and communication with others, and (4) absence of preparation for release and access to usual re-entry services.ConclusionParticipants responded that the prison and jails’ response during the COVID-19 pandemic was ill-prepared, inconsistent, and without appropriate measures to mitigate restrictions on liberty and prepare them for release. The lack of information sharing amplified their sense of fear and vulnerability unique to their incarceration status. Study findings have several institutional implications, such as requiring carceral facilities to establish public health preparedness procedures and making plans publicly available.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Arscott

Doan

Dayton

et al. 2023

Front. Public Health

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“…These included robust testing practices, placing people in smaller cohorts, providing masks and other personal protective equipment, and limiting unnecessary transfers. Interviews with 100 incarcerated people and staff across the US during 2021-22 suggested that a successful response was related to external and internal collaboration and communication, providing sufficient resources for mitigation, and understanding the link between the health of staff and that of incarcerated people 21. Decarceration—for example, by prioritising certain populations for early release (eg, those near their release date) or clemency from state leaders—also emerged as an important mitigation strategy.…”

Section: Covid-19 In American Prisons and Jailsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Covid-19 in US jails and prisons: implications for the next public health crisis

LeMasters,

Brinkley-Rubinstein

2024

BMJ

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“…Beyond insurance access barriers, other challenges to accessing primary care exist for older adults reentering the community, especially for older adults with more complex chronic medical needs (Puglisi et al , 2022b). Older adults are often released with either no or limited supply of prescription medications and few are connected to primary care providers in the community prior to release (Shavit et al , 2017).…”

Section: Acute Carementioning

confidence: 99%

The case for transitional services and programs for older adults reentering society: a narrative review of US departments of correction and recommendations

Onyeali

Howell²,

McInnes

et al. 2023

IJPH

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Purpose Older adults who are or have been incarcerated constitute a growing population in the USA. The complex health needs of this group are often inadequately addressed during incarceration and equally so when transitioning back to the community. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the literature on challenges older adults (age 50 and over) face in maintaining health and accessing social services to support health after an incarceration and to outline recommendations to address the most urgent of these needs. Design/methodology/approach This study conducted a narrative literature review to identify the complex health conditions and health services needs of incarcerated older adults in the USA and outline three primary barriers they face in accessing health care and social services during reentry. Findings Challenges to healthy reentry of older adults include continuity of health care; housing availability; and access to health insurance, disability and other support. The authors recommend policy changes to improve uniformity of care, development of support networks and increased funding to ensure that older adults reentering communities have access to resources necessary to safeguard their health and safety. Originality/value This review presents a broad perspective of the current literature on barriers to healthy reentry for older adults in the USA and offers valuable system, program and policy recommendations to address those barriers.

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Paths to Improving Pandemic Preparedness in Jails and Prisons: Perspectives of Incarcerated People and Correctional Staff

Cited by 12 publications

References 6 publications

Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Pandemic detention: life with COVID-19 behind bars in Maryland

Covid-19 in US jails and prisons: implications for the next public health crisis

The case for transitional services and programs for older adults reentering society: a narrative review of US departments of correction and recommendations

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