Health Issues Among Incarcerated Women

The female inmate population in the United States has exploded in the past two decades, increasing nearly six-fold. The prison system, however, has not expanded its health care to provide for this growing population of women. This comprehensive reader addresses the physical and mental needs of women prisoners and suggests that they cannot be properly treated unless their lifestyles before, during, and after incarceration are considered. The book abounds with statistics that outline the unique needs of the female prison population. For instance, a significant proportion of female prisoners suffer physical and sexual violence before serving time. Incarcerated teenagers are more likely than others from their age group to have engaged in behaviors that increased their risk for contracting sexually transmitted diseases like HIV. Because African American women are more likely than their counterparts to face jail time, their needs warrant specific attention. Female inmates also face more common sexual and reproductive health concerns as well as many of the same chronic and infectious diseases as men, such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and hepatitis. Bringing together twenty original essays, this volume will be invaluable for lobbyists and policy makers as well as for graduate students in the fields of criminal justice and health care.