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Psychiatric Disorder in Women Serving a Prison Sentence

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2018

Tony Maden ,
Mark Swinton  and
John Gunn
Tony Maden*
Affiliation:
Department of Forensic Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London SE5 8AF
Mark Swinton
Affiliation:
Department of Forensic Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London SE5 8AF
John Gunn
Affiliation:
Department of Forensic Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry, London SE5 8AF
*
∗Correspondence
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Abstract

The paper describes a case-note and interview study of a cross-sectional sample comprising 25% of all women serving a prison sentence in England and Wales. A 5% sample of the male sentenced prison population was used for comparison. Diagnoses were assigned on clinical grounds and an assessment was made of the treatment needs of all ‘cases’. The prevalence of psychosis, around 2%, was similar in the two groups but women had higher rates of mental handicap (6% v. 2%), personality disorder (18% v. 10%), neurosis (18% v. 10%) and substance abuse (26% v. 12%). There is a need for closer links between the NHS and prison health services. Women's prisons lack a therapeutic community of the Grendon type, which may be of benefit to a substantial minority of inmates.

Type
Papers
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 164 , Issue 1 , January 1994 , pp. 44 - 54
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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