Incarcerated

Care for Persons with a History of Incarceration

Authors: Colline Wong, Christopher Steele MD MPH

 

Introduction:

In the United States, 1 in 9 men and 1 in 56 women have been incarcerated, and 1 in 43 children have a parent who is currently in prison. Additionally, each year more than 650,000 people are released from prisons and more than 7 million individuals are released from jails1. Unfortunately, black patients are even more likely to be arrested with 1 in 3 men and 1 in 18 women lifetime risk! As future health-care providers, you are more likely to care for a patient who has been incarcerated or a patient whose parent has a history of involvement with the criminal justice system than you are to care for a patient who has sickle cell disease, cystic fibrosis, or type 1 diabetes. 

Despite this, students and health-care providers generally receive little training about this vulnerable population and their common challenges and vulnerabilities. Individuals who have been incarcerated disproportionately suffer from chronic illness, while facing consequentially negative social determinants of health—all of which are risk factors for and result from incarceration. The consequences of incarceration extend into the community, including patients’ families and neighborhoods. This module will focus on the adversities persons with a history of incarceration face and resources to address these adversities in order to provide higher quality care for these patients when they return to the community.

 

Learning Objectives

By the end of the session, learners will be able to:

  • Define criminal justice, including differences between prisons and jails, and probation and parole. 
  • List and describe the epidemiology of the incarcerated population.
  • Identify health disparities and incarceration-specific health risks in individuals with criminal justice involvement. 
  • Describe the differences in access to health care for incarcerated and non-incarcerated individuals.
  • Describe the challenges in providing continuity of care for individuals recently released from the criminal justice system. 
  • Identify resources to address challenges with reentry into the community after incarceration.

 

Required Assignments

  1.  Wong C. Introduction to Caring for Older Adults: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLto98F49hw 
  2. Wong C. Care for Older Adults: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYlpsjebXLo 
  3. Curran K. Health Equity - Reducing Disparities in Eldercare. Chausa.org. https://www.chausa.org/publications/health-progress/article/july-august-2019/health-equity---reducing-disparities-in-eldercare. Published 2019. 
  4. Spending Down Assets to Become Medicaid Eligible for Nursing Home / Long Term Care. Medicaid Planning Assistance. https://www.medicaidplanningassistance.org/medicaid-spend-down/. Published January 6, 2021.

 

Optional Assignments: 

  1. Booth K, & Landefeld C, & Chen H (2016). The hidden poor: care of the older adult. King T.E., & Wheeler M.B.(Eds.), Medical Management of Vulnerable and Underserved Patients: Principles, Practice, and Populations, 2e. McGraw-Hill. https://drive.google.com/file/d/117rgCj6tlx0jx65_qQmJTVAiypWCMPP_/view?usp=sharing.

 

Works Cited

  1. Booth K, & Landefeld C, & Chen H (2016). The hidden poor: care of the older adult. King T.E., & Wheeler M.B.(Eds.), Medical Management of Vulnerable and Underserved Patients: Principles, Practice, and Populations, 2e. McGraw-Hill.