Ministers announce further funding for prisoner healthcare

Further money to improve the wellbeing of prisoners has been announced by the Scottish Government.

A new £100,000 fund will support local partnership projects in prisons involving NHS boards and the Scottish Prison Service (SPS). All prisons will be able to identify their own priorities and bid for funding, as long as they are joint projects.

The fund is part of the Scottish Government’s Health and Social Care in Prisons Programme to address issues including integrating health and social care in prisons, and being more transparent about the quality of care and the state of prisoners’ health.

A report last year by the Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland found an "urgent need for change" especially to meet the needs of the growing number of older prisoners, as more people are sentenced for historic sex offences. It concluded: "The current degrading treatment experienced by some older prisoners cannot be allowed to continue. Older prisoners are too often isolated and receive inadequate healthcare."

Responding to today's announcement, National Prisoner Healthcare Network Chair Alex McMahon said: "As the prison population changes, so do the healthcare needs of prisoners. People aged over 50 are the fastest-growing group in Scotland’s prisons, bringing new healthcare challenges and increased age-related conditions that are often difficult to treat in a secure environment. Providing quality healthcare means close cooperation between health and prison staff, and this fund is a welcome resource to promote and foster partnership working and help improve the care provided in Scotland’s prisons."

Public Health Minister Aileen Campbell commented: "Everyone has a right of equal access to healthcare, whether they are in prison or not. Healthcare in prison has improved in recent years, but prisoners often have extreme or complex health needs. It is important we address those properly, not just for the wellbeing of prisoners but because the impact is felt by families, communities and our public services.

"The prison environment means the only way to improve services is by the NHS and SPS working together. In some prisons, this already works well. In others, the different cultures of the organisations makes this difficult, and this fund will improve partnership working.

"Importantly, we are not imposing answers on prisons but trusting the judgment and commitment of frontline staff to find the solutions that work for them."