Issues Facing Prison Service

I carry on the major challenges facing the prison ho purpose service over the next 5 years, are preventing the introduction of medicates into prisons and managing prisoners with medicate problems. do drugs finds in prison three-fold over the last 5 years, i. e. approximately 6 drugs finds per day in Scottish prison ho practice sessions. 69% of the prison population report drug practice session compared to 8% in the community. Research has identified defined routes into prison. The main routes being visits, ring armour, prisoners on admission, over the wall, prison staff and concealed in clothes sent in.These routes are organised and concealed by individuals using unlawful mobile recollects, which are free from monitoring and provide real clipping direction. The prison service has the difficult task of allowing prisoners access to their families in decorous humane surroundings, whilst at the same time preventing the introduction of drugs into the prison. Some prisoners utilise pressure on their friends and family to introduce drugs at visits this may be with with(p) reluctantly and has serious consequences for the drug mule if he or she is caught.Basic tools such as observation, intelligence, CCTV out with the visit area and x-ray equipment can adjourn this practice, however, is not wholly effective. Items concealed in mail and include clothing sent in through the postal service, are well cognise to prison staff who routinely x-ray all items. This practice is sorry for the small amount of drugs that can be concealed in these items. The meddling constraints on prisoners on reception from court who have drugs concealed in body orifices is a difficult practice to tackle and can subroutine up sizeable amounts of drugs being brought in through this route.Packages thrown over prison walls during exercise periods have become a profitable route of introduction. Prison staffs are advised not to intervene during this highly populated and peeled p eriod, but to monitor and deal with the recipients after the event this allows the package to be secreted before intervention. Corrupt prison staff, for a variety of reasons i. e. debt, pressure or blackmail, introduce drugs, money mobile phones etc into the prisons. This relatively safe route is highly problematic as the quantities involved are dependent on the reasons, poise and desire of the corrupt staff member.For those participating in drug use in prison, there is a financial and health cost. Limited supplement and high demand result in inflated prices. The debt incurred is paid for through a variety of means i. e. through canteen purchases, payments from families outside, selling or trading their own belongings or trading services i. e. inflicting strength on a nominated individual or acting as a drug runner, collecting debts or distributing drugs. The health costs are those associated with drug use i. e. lood-borne viruses from sharing equipment, anxiety, depression, para noia, weight loss and malnutrition. Reducing drug introduction and managing drug users, are different sides of the same coin and cannot solve in isolation. These drug markets are associated with violence and intimidation, continued drug use in prison will growth the chances of dependent drug use when released. It is generally regarded that the take-up of treatment services in prison is jibe to the availability of drugs at bottom the area.Increased security measures without adequate drug treatment programmes could be problematic. A robust clinical person centred detoxification scheme conjugated with enthronement in a Counselling, Assessment, Referral, Advice and Throughcare service (CARAT) have shown to have a overconfident impact in drug use decline. Drug free blocks, coupled with voluntary drug testing, have likewise shown to significantly reduce drug use amongst the population. Enhanced regimes which include employment and greater privileges have also proven successful.My recommendations to reduce the introduction of drugs into prisons and to manage prisoners with drug problems are as follows * Nominate a Drug Strategy co-ordinator whose key role is to breach equal weight to drug treatment and supply reduction measures within the establishment. * Have dedicated Drug Supply Reduction Teams. Motivated teams maintain better results than less interested teams. * Improved liaison with local police, pregnant for tackling all routes of external supply and should be included in the local prison drug strategy. Established prisons should move the prisoners to exercise areas off from prison walls. New builds should be designed to protect the exercise yard away from prison walls. * Security in and around the visit areas should be intensify by the use of passive drug dogs, on site CCTV and skilful motivated dedicated Drug Supply Reduction Teams. * Literature for visitors and prisoners on the impact, consequences and penalties of drug use and supply should be displayed and available for perusal. Passive drug dogs should be used in the searching of prisoners property, mail and accommodation area as a matter of course. * Cultivate a greater awareness amongst staff of the use and importance of intelligence report and feeding this into the National Intelligence Model. * Where possible block mobile phone signals, however the use of the Body Orifice Scanner System (BOSS) hold should be used in all searches to detect plastic and metal. naming and tracking of vulnerable staff should be addressed by the Drug Strategy Co-ordinator in collaboration with local police. * All prisons should have a person centred clinical detoxification scheme with recognition of the potential for misdirection and misdirect of prescribed intervention. * Follow up and aftercare is as important as pharmaceutic detoxification, CARAT services with investment in staff is crucial to the strong point of work undertaken. Links and referral to Throughcare Addiction Serv ices (TAS) will ensure continuity of treatment and care on release. Voluntary Testing Programmes provide raise and incentives for drug users to last out drug free, resources should be allocated to continue the service. With skilful co-ordinated intervention, the reduction in drugs being introduced into prison will result in an increase in drug users seeking intervention. The challenge is to constantly review and correct strategies to block new routes of introduction and to offer alternatives and support to those who wish to remain drug free.