Developing a drug program for the prison inmates have to be planned and managed keenly. According to statistics, the prisons have been filled with people who were arrested due to drug crimes. These prisoners may have been arrested due to different drug-related crimes such as possession of drugs, or they may have been arrested due to driving under the influence of alcohol. It has been observed that some prisoners were arrested due to drug crimes are not addicted to drugs. However, addiction among prisoners has been found to be common (Van & Davis, 2016). The Centre for Prisoners Health and Human Rights gave out an observation that almost half of the inmates in prison meet the criteria for substance dependence or abuse. Individuals who have an addiction experience mental disorders including depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
According to the National Institutes of Health, about 45% of the prisoners in the state prisons and local jails usually struggle with substance use and psychological disorder (Van & Davis, 2016). Some prison institutes do not provide treatment to inmates who suffer from an addiction that could better and save their lives. Use of the necessary medication to treat such inmates may help them manage withdrawal symptoms during detox. Treatment in prison can save the inmates lives. Prisoners who receive treatment during their jail time decreases the risk of more substance use, experiencing relapse and drug-related health. Drug management program should include a variety of activities including religious ministry meetings, psychotherapy sessions and also 12-step programs which provides for anonymous alcoholic meetings for the prisoners with substance use issues.
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The process of developing a new drug program for prison inmates may be challenging. To ensure effective development of a new drug program in the prison, the prisoners should be given support and given time to adapt to the prison, acknowledge them, provide them with emotional safety, and also motivate them during the time they find it difficult to fit into the prison. Ensuring that there are adequate medical professionals who can help the inmates in any medical issues is also necessary, as well as, guarantying there is sufficient medication for treating the inmates in prison. It is vital to introduce programs that each inmate may take part in including the Non-Residential Drug Abuse Treatment Programs, the Residential Drug Abuse Program and Community Treatment Services (Monahan & Skeem, 2016). These programs will be made available for the prisoners to take part in them. All the elements of the drug abuse programs will also be used including screening, testing, diagnosis, assessment, referral, group therapy, individual therapy, and even 12-step groups.
After developing a new drug program, it should effectively be used in prison settings. The inmates who are registered to have drug possession problems should be attended to. The psychotherapy and support group meetings should be utilized effectively. Inmates with drug addiction problems should be encouraged to participate in group meetings and psychotherapy to help improve their health and even prevent mental problems (Monahan & Skeem, 2016). Detoxification phase will also be utilized especially to the drug addicts hence helping them withdraw from the effects of the drugs. The elements of drug abuse programs will also be utilized in prison settings. The process will be followed to ensure all the inmate receive the medical attendance they require.
The new drug program for prison inmates will help reduce drug addiction and misuse by the prison inmates. Treating inmates with drug addiction provides a chance to reduce the rate of drug abuse and also decrease associated criminal behavior. By forming the new drug program, those inmates in prison who were not able to receive treatment will be able to obtain enough care hence improving their medical outcome and also reduce their rates of reincarceration (Pompoco et al., 2017). Not being able to provide medical health to the drug-abusing inmate is a missed chance to improve both public health and safety effectively. (Monahan & Skeem, 2016) Also, drug abusing inmates are known to be at high risk for communicable disease such as human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C and occasionally having comorbid psychiatric disorders which shows the need for urgent treatment for the inmates.
Screening should be done to all inmates immediately by the qualified medical professionals in the prison setting. This should be the first medical clearance. It should be done immediately the inmates are admitted into the prison setting. The prison officer may inspect the inmates to be aware of who is sick to ensure a screening procedure is done or maybe get admitted (Mukherjee et al., 2016). Inspecting the inmates immediately after admission will be made it easier to select the ill from the rest hence receiving immediate medical care. Screening is done in a few minutes after the inmates have been admitted. The inmates who need medical care will, therefore, be attended to until they get better. In general, it is essential for all the inmates in the prison setting to receive screening. Therefore, each inmate will receive all elements of screening as stated in the standards.
Testing is also necessary when starting a new drug program for prison inmates. Drug testing contributes to the general objectives of decreasing drug abuse when it used as a more significant drug strategy. Drug testing is important in ensuring the prevention of drug abuse in prison facilities. Drug testing can be done by use of urine from the inmates which are then taken to the lab for analysis (Mukherjee et al., 2016). All the inmates who are found to be involved in drug abuse, any drugs, should be forced and placed in a programme for forced regular testing. Drug testing aims at increasing the detection of those using drugs in prison and also pass a warning to those that the inmates are at a greater risk of being caught if they misuse drugs. Diagnosis of what the inmates are suffering from is important. Inmates who are diagnosed o through various tests and diagnostic questionnaires. The test and diagnostic notation include the IQ test, wide range achievement test, scope of substance abuse, the latest mental health treatment, alcoholism, criminality, drug abuse in the immediate family, manipulative and assaultive tendency diagnostics and many more.
Assessment of the inmates in prisons has to be done. Inmate assessment involves measuring how severe substance use is to determine the level of treatment to provide to the inmate. Assessment instruments may help know how severe the inmate drug abuse is, the level of service needed and finally the how treatment can be allocated to the inmate. Referral practices will also be done. Inmate referral is done one the screening process has been done determining the level of treatment the inmate requires. If the level of treatment has not to be provided adequately, the inmate can be referred so that they can acquire the required medical qualification. Referral decisions are made in regard to whether the inmate drug abuse problems are severe enough to provide treatment (Prendergast, McCollister, & Warda, 2017). Only inmates with severe drug problems may be referred to receive treatment. Therefore, if the drug abuse problem is found to be serious when referral decisions are made.
Group therapy is found to be very helpful in improving the inmate’s drug abuse problems. It is the most common treatment method in most prison institutions. Group therapy seeks to focus on the underlying psychological and behavioral issues that lead to drug abuse and possession by addressing self-awareness and behavioral changes through communication with other inmates in group therapy. The duration and intensity of the group therapy may vary (Ray et al., 2017). The trained professionals may head teams or groups of 8 to 10 members a number of times in the week expecting that every individual will be committed to the group therapy session and aim to have a meaningful change in an emotionally safe environment. Group therapy usually takes about 1 to 2 hours per session.
Individual therapy is also important in controlling drug abuse among inmates. The professional counselors may perform in many different philosophical and theoretical orientations and additionally use therapeutic approaches in individual therapy (Ray et al., 2017). Inmates are always consulted in a private room, and they are in private hence making the inmate free to explore more sensitive issues which they may not be willing to share it with others. Individual therapy gives the counselors a chance to coach inmates on the breakdown prevention techniques. Individual therapy aims to help the inmates develop and maintain an enhanced self-image and accept their responsibilities.
Finally, 12- step meetings in a prison setting provides a number of programs made to help the inmates in overcoming a substance use abuse. (Friedmann et al., 2015) These programs include Drug Abuse Education, Non-residential Drug Abuse Treatment, Residential Drug Abuse Program, and Community Treatment Service. The programs are well-designed prison treatment programs which help decrease criminality, relapse, inmate misconduct, and recidivism. These programs also increase the levels of education, boost employment opportunities, mend the relationship and improve overall health.
In conclusion, many inmates suffer from drug abuse and hence require medical assistance to help them better their health. Therefore, the new drug program for the prison inmates will help the inmates especially those who have drug abuse problems by providing the medical assistance they need.
References
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Monahan, J., & Skeem, J. L. (2016). Risk assessment in criminal sentencing. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 12, 489-513.
Mukherjee, T. I., Wickersham, J. A., Desai, M. M., Pillai, V., Kamarulzaman, A., & Altice, F. L. (2016). Factors associated with interest in receiving prison-based methadone maintenance therapy in Malaysia. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 164, 120-127.
Pompoco, A., Wooldredge, J., Lugo, M., Sullivan, C., & Latessa, E. J. (2017). Reducing inmate misconduct and prison returns with facility education programs. Criminology & Public Policy, 16(2), 515-547.
Prendergast, M. L., McCollister, K., & Warda, U. (2017). A randomized study of the use of screening, brief intervention, and referral to treatment (SBIRT) for drug and alcohol use with jail inmates. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 74, 54-64.
Ray, B., Grommon, E., Buchanan, V., Brown, B., & Watson, D. P. (2017). Access to Recovery and recidivism among former prison inmates. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 61(8), 874-893.
Van Wormer, K., & Davis, D. R. (2016 ). Addiction Treatment . Cengage Learning.
