ABSTRACT
The prevalence of mental disorders and comorbidity with substance abuse and personality disorders is high in prisoners. Furthermore, drug abuse in prison is a widespread problem throughout prisons around the world. In this retrospective study, we analyzed the prison deaths over six years (2012-2017). For each death, we collected data of the Berlin prison system, the prison hospital and the State Institute for Forensic and Social Medicine Berlin and the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, Charité Medical University Berlin. In total, 33 prisoners died during our study period, of which 24 committed suicide. In 25% of the suicide cases, forensic toxicology reports were positive for drugs without cases of lethal intoxication. A direct influence of drug intoxication on prisoner deaths and suicide was not common in our data. Small sample size, a missing control group, and the retrospective study design limit generalizability of the results.
Subject(s)
Prisoners/psychology , Prisoners/statistics & numerical data , Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiology , Substance-Related Disorders/psychology , Suicide/statistics & numerical data , Adult , Diagnosis, Dual (Psychiatry) , Female , Germany/epidemiology , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Organizational Case Studies , Personality Disorders , Prisons , Retrospective Studies , Young AdultABSTRACT
Violent behavior in correctional facilities is common and differs substantially in type, target, implication, and trigger. Research on frequency and characteristics of violent behavior in correctional facilities and psychiatric hospitals is limited. Results from recent research suggest that comorbidity of severe mental disorder, personality disorder, and diagnosis of substance abuse is related to a higher risk of violent behavior. In the Berlin prison hospital, a database was created to collect data from all violent incidences (n=210) between 1997 and 2006 and between 2010 and 2016. In a retrospective, case-control study, we analyzed specific socioeconomic data and psychiatric diagnosis and compared the group of prisoners with violent behavior with randomly selected prisoners of the same department without violent behavior (n = 210). Diagnosis of schizophrenia, non-German nationality, no use of an interpreter, no children, and no previous sentence remained significantly associated with the dependent variable violent behavior. There were no significant differences regarding age and legal statuses. Practical implications for clinical work are discussed.
ABSTRACT
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00762.].
