Substance Abuse and Drug Control Inside Prison Walls

Introduction: Drug Dependence in the Prison Environment

It is most often within the prison environment that dependence on and addiction to drugs and other substances takes hold. This is attributed to the various stress factors to which individuals within the prison are generally subjected. Studies have shown that the risk of a person developing substance dependence increases significantly within prison, along with an over-representation of people with pre-existing drug problems. (Drug Prevention Outside and Inside Prison Walls)

In a report compiled by CBC News Online Staff on April 8, 2004, entitled "Disease Rates Higher in Canadian Inmates," it was stated that prison inmates are more likely than the general population to suffer from a variety of physical and mental health problems, to contract infectious diseases, and to die more prematurely. Furthermore, the report noted that the government department responsible lacks a basic, overarching plan by which the prevention, treatment, and control of the spread of diseases can be achieved within prison walls. As a result, public health services within prisons are critically lacking. According to the statistics recorded in the report, prison inmates are generally younger than the rest of the population as a whole, but more pointedly, male prisoners are more likely to be treated for diabetes and heart conditions, twice as likely as the general public to take up smoking, and ten times as likely to take up alcohol and/or drugs. (Report Highlights Health Concerns inside Prisons)

Health Consequences and the Scale of U.S. Incarceration

Today, the United States has more than 1.8 million people behind bars: approximately 100,000 are in federal custody, 1.1 million in state custody, and 600,000 are held in local jails. These are individuals who have been convicted of federal and state crimes. The United States imprisons more people than any other country in the world — more even than China — and this is considered a relatively recent phenomenon. The rate of incarceration stands at 445 per 100,000 people in the general population, and among adult men it is approximately 1,100 per 100,000. These rates continue to rise: over the past two decades alone, more than a thousand new jails have been built, yet the inmate population in America continues to grow by 50,000 to 80,000 people every year. (The Prison Industrial Complex)

Most prison inmates, even though they have committed various crimes, are more often than not drawn from among the poor, the homeless, the mentally impaired, drug dealers, substance abusers, alcoholics, and sociopaths of every kind. More than seventy percent of the prison population is illiterate. It is worth noting that a few decades ago, many such individuals were handled by the mental health system rather than by the criminal justice system. More than 60 to 80 percent of the American inmate population has some history of substance abuse. At the same time, the number of drug treatment slots available has decreased by approximately fifty percent since 1993, meaning that drug treatment is available to only one in ten inmates who may need it. (The Prison Industrial Complex)

Substance Abuse Profiles of the Inmate Population

Richard Carlson, who was incarcerated in the East Block of Kingston Penitentiary in Canada, has spoken extensively about the treatment he underwent as a prison inmate. He states that he lost his mental balance at a certain point and slashed his neck and other parts of his body in acts of self-mutilation. What he suffered subsequently in the psychiatric unit of Kingston Penitentiary was, according to him, infinitely more horrific. There, he states, he was administered more than twenty different types of drugs, including a substance described as a "truth serum," which induced hallucinations.

Prison Drug Strategy: The Northern Ireland Model

The misuse and abuse of drugs can profoundly undermine discipline and order for all inmates, and the prison service must therefore address prevention with particular focus on substance abuse. It has been argued that if prisoners are given proper, timely, and appropriate treatment while confined, they will be better equipped to lead productive lives upon release and will be less likely to reoffend. The Prison Service has adopted the definition of "drug abuse" as the non-medical use of drugs intended only for medical treatment, as well as the use of substances that have no accepted medical purpose, in accordance with the "Drug Misuse in Northern Ireland: A Policy Statement" of 22 December 1995.

This definition does not cover alcohol or other substance abuse, though the Prison Service acknowledges that these are also injurious to health and may lead to reoffending. The principles adopted by the Northern Ireland Prison Service in developing its drug strategy are as follows: the misuse of drugs within prison will not be tolerated; all prisoners will be encouraged to adopt a responsible attitude toward drugs and to maintain that attitude upon release, through education and counseling; and if an individual is found to be addicted to drugs, appropriate treatment will be provided, along with care and support, to enable the individual to complete treatment effectively. (Drugs Policy and Strategy, Northern Ireland Prison Service)

The strategy formulated by the Northern Ireland Prison Service identifies four primary key action areas: control, care, education, and information. It was further decided that all parts of the Service would collaborate with agencies operating both in the prison environment and in the wider community. Accordingly, several action plans were implemented, under which all governing Governors are obliged to implement those plans as effectively as possible, with each Governor required to outline a strategy setting out how the plan will be implemented within their particular prison.

To ensure that relevant information is properly conveyed to all establishments and that strategy implementation can be monitored, each prison must report certain statistics to Headquarters on a quarterly basis. These include the quantity and weight of drugs found, the number of disciplinary proceedings arising from drug possession, the total number of prisoners restricted to closed visits, and similar data. (Drugs Policy and Strategy, Northern Ireland Prison Service)