Effects of Prisoner Self Harm on Prison Staff Well Being - Literature review Example

Effects of Prisoner Self-Harm On Prison Staff Well-Being Literature Review Introduction There has been a lot of difficulty in trying to understand the reason why the suicides and self harm are common among prisoners since the prisoners do not open up easily or are embarrassed by what they are undergoing. Generally the essence of creating the prisons several centuries ago was to ensure that felons would face full force of the law. Some argue that the courts usually concentrate on the fact that criminals could have committed the crimes without motive rather that basing judgment on the types of the crimes that are committed. This is true in most cases since the establishment of the courts also had in mind that felons could be corrected, guided and counselled and hence focused on this more that taking punitive measures. However with the current changes in the societal norms, many people want the rules to be toughened for the criminals as crime rates and seriousness of the offences among the youths have been increasing drastically. Self Harm The rate at which self harm is taking place in prisons in the United Kingdom is alarming. Female prisoners have been reported to record disproportionately high incidences of such occurrences. The prison staffs have a possible significant role in identifying and managing these cases and those that present highest risk. In spite of all these, the effects that these occurrences have on prison staff have not been addressed. Previous researchers have categorised the incidences as genuine or non genuine self harm (Haw et al 2001). This is useful in helping to understand the reasons which lead to the such actions as those prisoners whose acts of self harm were found to be non genuine were thought to be rational manipulation so as to achieve certain ends. In most cases, the staff show resentment towards these prisoners, furthermore most of the staff also reported that it was becoming a serious problem to manage their welfare and balance with the security tasks, such as feeling confident with the detention functions at the prison. Thought it may not be openly and widely addressed, it’s quite evident that prison staffs suffer psychologically, behaviourally and physiologically following these events of prisoner self harm. The commonest feeling reported include a feeling of being unsupported and untrained in their custodian duties and also feel more pressurised due to time limits and low man power (Haw et al 2001). The prison staff as a consequence of the above factors feels lack of confidence in dealing with incidences of self harm. Being incarcerated can be a very difficult moment for some individuals hence it’s not unusual for prisoners to at times think that they are facing very serious problem that they cannot deal with or solve them. Some individuals feel so desperate and depressed that they may contemplate causing physical harm to themselves or even committing suicide. Generally these moments do not usually last for long and the prison staff suspecting a prisoner to be undergoing such will put in every possible initiative and effort to try and assist and support. In most cases the prison staff are educated and trained on skills to provide assistance to prisoners who present the risk of self harm like suicide. The prison staffs provide support and advice to felons and this has been very critical over the past years. The prison staffs provide company, making the prisoner affected to feel safe and develop self esteem again (Snow & Mchugh 2000). Such relations develop and the staff and prisoners get socially and emotionally connected. The prisoners can carefully explain their problems to the Samaritan trained listener who might give advice in the end (Haw et al 2001). The prison service usually uses a care planning scheme termed as Assessment Care in Custody and Teamwork- ACCT to identify prisoners at possible risk and to also care for the felons who present high risk of self harms or suicide. ACCT has been effective since its establishment in the year 2007 as it is able to provide a more fluid wide ranging disciplinary support to inmates who present high risk of self harm and suicide (Haw et al 2001). This scheme is aimed at encouraging the prison staff to work in collaboration to provide personal care to prisoners in misery, to assist in resolving a potentially devastating crisis or to assist persons with long term requirements like those with a pattern of harming themselves repetitively, and to also better the management and reduction of distress. Prisoners who are identified to present high risk are fully involved in the process of Assessment Care in Custody and Teamwork. They get to be interviewed by a trained assessor who then draws a care plan for the individual (Haw et al 2001). The identified prisoners can then get to attend case reviews; support is given to them after a case manager has reviewed the care. Working With People Who Self Harm It is very difficult to work in a prison especially when tension crops up among individual who perceive that their problems cannot be resolved and the only way out is causing or rather inflicting pain on themselves to meet certain ends or even carrying out suicide (Snow & Mchugh 2000). Previous researchers have indicated that the prison staffs who work with prisoners who cause self harm were more likely to undergo negative emotional feelings like depression or a range of anxieties. There is very little literature concerning the needs of staff who work in such places where self harm incidences are very high. In the event of prisoner harm which may include, burning, cuts, piercing or attempted murder/suicide, a lot of things follow including emotional reactions from the prison staff and fellow inmates. Attempted suicide or complete suicide is the commonest type of self harm that has been recorded before. When people are incarcerated, they get depressed and at some point, certain individuals feel that they are undergoing a tough moment that they cannot handle or take it anymore. In such cases, suicide is perceived as the only way to escape the suffering (Haw et al 2001). Prison staff is affected by such occasions because of the closeness they have with prisoners and the fact that they are human and have feelings just like any other person. Events of self harm may present cases may leave a very horrible and emotional scene particularly the cases that include suicide attempts and burning. The prisoners do this because they are under stress or because they do no see any other viable alternative of solving their problems. It’s always the duty of the prison staff to secure the crime scene and carry away the body if the suicide was complete. Handling such sites can be very devastating to the prison staff because of the emotional reactions inflicted. The general reaction is generally stress, anxiety, insomnia (lack of sleep), bad memories, depression and nervousness. When these symptoms are not controlled, the outcomes can be devastating as well (Snow & Mchugh 2000). Cases of stress are very difficult to manage and may affect personal life for instance when personal accomplishments are not met. Human beings tend to adopt to situations in different ways; considering the fact that events of self harm and suicide attempts are very common in prisons than the normal populations, the staff and other people who get to witness them very often may develop stress and eventually depression or they may get used to these condition leading to hardening of hearts (they become cruel and act in inhuman manner). People in this condition may act alienated and hostile and showing no signs of human feelings as they may be very cruel (Haw et al 2001). Suicide and other forms of self harm in prisons are leading causes of death; the security of the prisons, intensity of the committed crime, and the phase of imprisonment the felon is in are the main factors that stimulate self harm and suicide attempt. The prison staff may feel pity and sympathy for the felons who inflict pain on themselves or those who think about committing suicide. Its been estimated that on every other aspect being constant, self harm and suicide attempts are carried out by inmates who are suffering from permanent disease conditions, those suffering from mental disorders, suffering from hopelessness and depression, or those who have a previous record of attempted suicide. Such people require relevant intervention and appropriate therapy or treatment. Researchers have worked out theories of typical felon suicidal character though these profile alone cannot be useful in providing solutions or correction to the staff or even help in identifying suicidal inmates and non suicidal ones (Snow & Mchugh 2000). The prison staff works hard to find solutions to such cases but these efforts usually faces some setbacks as it is very difficult to work out a profile for each inmate and address their problems. A prison is supposedly meant to correct character of individuals from bad to good but in most cases; felons have different perception of the prison facility, most of the view the prison as a place to humiliate and intimidate them as they are restricted and their freedom is strictly controlled. Prison staff experience several physiological changes following incidences of self harm for instance a devastating situation can lead to lack of sleep, increased heart beat (palpitations) due to the horror, and even hypertension that is correlated with stress. The effects of self harm on the staff increases with the increased number of occurrences. According to statistics, there were about 2,040 incidences of self harm the previous year and about 914 cases of assault on staff in UK according to the ministry of justice. The incidences of self harm have remained fairly constant for the last three years having doubled in ten years. The number of self harmers has not changed significantly and last year the figures that were issued by the ministry of justice were only provisional implying that the actual results could be higher. These statistics have increased the need to address the safety of staff and prisoners and fresh call for creating newer ways to be used in addressing these concerns (Wortley 2002) Preventing Self Harm Generally self harm or suicide is not a common event, however the situation is different when it comes to the prison life experience in the prison; it’s estimated that the rates of suicide incidences and self harm is about seven to ten times more common among criminals as compared the normal community. Due to this exposure, prison staffs are affected by handling such incidences (Sattar 2001). The entire prison staffs are therefore expected to be well equipped with the relevant skills for handling distressed individuals and the potentially suicidal felons. This task is very difficult and tragedies are bound to occur. Prison workers are expected to understand suicide and that people who attempt suicide have reasons that are related to the high vulnerability to suicide. The major possible causes as indicated earlier include depression, anxiety, personality disorder and psychosis. These victims are likely to suffer lack of social support. Furthermore they are likely to have suffered adverse events in life especially sexual abuse of even domestic violence. Another critical factor that could be of concern is social development of the victim lack of social support is a major cause of these incidences (Wortley 2002). Adverse effects like loss of a loved one will still play part as well as ending of a long affectionate relationship. The probability of attempting suicide is double in prisoners who happened to be placed in local authority care than those who did not. These factors have shown that there are some traits that are specific for triggering self harm. These factors interact in a unique way, for instance when an individual suffered vulnerability elements like depression or social deprivation in the past. If these events recur in prison and induces stress, then the individual is likely to be affected by situational triggers like relationship break up. The effects are very serious when there are no protective factors like hope, faith and self esteem. Before an individual result in suicide attempt, it’s likely that they have gone through a process like thought of suicide, attempt suicide by making very concrete plans (Sattar 2001). There has also been a lot of misconception of the way people take care of the distressed and those suicidal. Some of the common example of this is in the event when an inmate feels that he or she has nothing to live for after being jailed for life. The prisoner feels that he/she has a right to kill her/himself whenever pleased as there is nothing they are living for. It’s extremely important not to judge other people’s lives and no one can predict the future. Some people experience lapses of stress and strains of daily life and this could trigger feelings of self harm or suicide. In most cases people view this as the most extreme of solving a problem. The prison staffs have a very difficult task in convincing someone who is greatly determined to take his/her own life not to. The staffs in this case have to ensure that the individual understands that suicide is not the only way to solve problems (Sattar 2001). Prevention of Suicide The prison workers cannot easily identify the inmates who are likely to attempt suicide or cause harm to themselves. During the period indicated 1996 to 2000, only 24% of all the prisoners who passed on had shown sign as increased risk of suicide. One on the vulnerable group to self harm is the teenagers. This was particularly so because in the past, youths were being charged in the same courts as adult. Incidences of self harm and suicide, torture murder and sexual become so rampant that prison staff had to recommend reforms. The reforms included formation of juvenile courts. It’s quite saddening in the eyes of prison staff who could be workers see a young person suffer because of mistakes that can be corrected in better way as explained below (Sattar 2001). The juvenile court system is mandated to address the main cause of the crimes committed by minors and to cut down the rates of recidivism. These similar rates in standard systems range from 6 percent to nine percent while the rates in the traditional recidivism are estimated to be double this for young felons and are approximately 20 percent .The principle of restoration of justice as used in the provision of fairness in the youth offenders demands that the youth felon compensates the victim (plaintiff) and/or the society and offer a chance to the victims and the community at large to partake in the process of ensuring juvenile process and to offer rational decisions. Since the victims are allowed to take active roles in these processes, the qualitative evaluations are carried out into victim’s effects and contentment (Sattar 2001). In 1899, a different court was created in Chicago to try young people for committing crimes before a court termed the juvenile court. In some odd cases the judges could decide that the young person involved was “not acquiescent to the juvenile court’s treatment”. This meant that the youths were to be referred to the adult criminal court as the jurisdiction of their courts was relinquished. In the recent past, most sates have implemented their rules and regulations to increase the number of incidences when the youths would be referred for prosecution in the adult court (Snow & Mchugh 2000). There are several ways in which the youths are tried as adults in the current judicial system in the US and are basically categorized into find groups; the first method is the judicial waiver. This method is being practiced by 45 states which allow the judge’s diplomacy to take the youth’s case to be tried in the adult courts; a second category is the prosecutorial discretion of the direct file which allows the prosecutor of the case to refer it to the adult criminal courts for trial and this is currently being practiced in 15 states (Sattar 2001); the mandatory waiver is the third ways in which the youth trial can be referred to the adult criminal court and this is resulted to when the youth court judges decide to automatically refer the juvenile criminal case to the adult courts for some crime due to their nature, age of the offender or the previous criminal record of the felon, this also being done in 15 states; the fourth method in this context is statutory exclusion which is being practiced in 29 states and this demands that the juvenile case be tried at the adult criminal court depending on the age of the alleged criminal or the intensity of the crime or both the cases; lastly the fifth method is the age of majority statutes which is mainly being practiced in three states namely New York, Connecticut and north Carolina- in this case, the youths aged 16 and 17 years of age are automatically prosecuted in the adult courts and other ten states, Illinois, Georgia, Michigan, Missouri, Louisiana, Texas, Massachusetts, South Carolina, Wisconsin and New Hampshire which prosecute 17 year old youths in adult courts (Snow & Mchugh 2000) Caring For Prisoners Contemplating Suicide Taking care of a prisoner who is contemplating suicide is very difficult. Two issues need to be addressed; to ensure their safety immediately and to assist the victims to recover and tackle the cases of their depression. Different experts are needed to implement these issues in a care plan for the prisoners. The prison staff gets emotionally attached to victims of self harm and in particular those attempting suicide (Sattar 2001). When one is identified as a potential suicide victim or presenting high risk of self harm, immediate safety should be ensured and this include close supervision where the workers keep a closer look and do not leave the individual alone. Shared cells are preferred and medication administered. Encouragement and supportive network should be organized for instance the chaplain, Samaritans and even relative visits (Wortley 2002). The victim should be assessed to determine the state of mental health as many people found in such situations also suffer emotional problems. The major problem should be identified and neutralized since treating the cause is the best way to alleviate the problem. Suicidal thoughts have to be suppressed so the effects are avoided. A way or a strategy of confronting the suicidal thought should be formulated to assist the victim to resist the temptation when the thoughts come back again (Sattar 2001). There is high risk that present after release and this should be carefully addressed where history and risk of suicide are included in resettlement program References Haw C. Hawton K. Houston K. & Townsend E. (2001) Psychiatric And Personality Disorders In Deliberate Self-Harm Patients, British Journal Of Psychiatry, 178, 2001, 48-54 Sattar G. (2001) Deaths of Offenders in Prison and Under Community Supervision. Home Office Research Study No. 231, London, Home Office. Snow L & Mchugh M (Eds). (2000) Suicide in Prisons’ British Psychological Society. Liecester Wortley R.K (2002) Situational Prison Control. Crime Prevention in Correctional Institutions. Cambridge University Press Read More