An assessment of health related quality of life in a male prison population in Greece associations with health related characteristics and characteristics of detention.

Constantinos Togas,Maria Raikou,Dimitris Niakas

doi:10.1155/2014/274804

Abstract

Background. Prisoners constitute a group with increased health and social care needs. Although implementing policies that aim at improving outcomes within this population should be a priority area, studies that attempt to assess health outcomes and health related quality of life (HRQoL) in this population are limited. Aim. To assess HRQoL in a prison population in Greece and to explore the relationship between HRQoL and a set of individual sociodemographic and health related characteristics and characteristics of detention. Methods. A cross-sectional study involving 100 male prisoners was conducted in the prison of Corinth in Greece. HRQoL was assessed through the use of the SF-36 and the EQ-5D. Results. The mean physical and mental summary scores of the SF-36 were 55.33 and 46.82, respectively. The EQ-VAS mean score was 76.41%, while the EQ-5D index was 0.72. Multivariate analysis identified a statistical relationship between HRQoL and the conditions of detention, controlling for the effect of sociodemographic characteristics, morbidity, and mental problems. The use of narcotics in particular is significantly associated with lower HRQoL. Conclusions. Implementation of policies that aim at preventing the use of narcotics within the prison environment is expected to contribute to improved HRQoL in this population.

Highlights

According to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) publication on imprisonment, the estimated imprisoned population across the WHO European Region on any given day in 2012 was 2 million people [1]
Concentrating first on the coefficients which attain statistical significance at the 5% level, the results show that prisoners who are allowed to leave the prison on temporary license regularly report a higher EQ-5D score compared to those who are not and that the duration of the use of narcotics is associated with a lower EQ-5D score
At a 10% level of significance, the results show statistical associations between health related quality of life (HRQoL) and the level of education, with those having higher education reporting a lower EQ-5D score, whether the prisoners work in prison or not, with those working while in prison reporting a higher EQ-5D score than those who do not, and with the degree of morbidity as proxied by the number of diagnosed health conditions, with higher morbidity being associated with a lower EQ-5D score

Summary

Introduction

According to the latest World Health Organization (WHO) publication on imprisonment, the estimated imprisoned population across the WHO European Region on any given day in 2012 was 2 million people [1]. The majority of the prison population comes from poor and deprived and vulnerable social groups and approximately 21% are foreign nationals. As a result, they are at a higher risk of communicable and noncommunicable diseases compared with people in the general population [1]. Aim. To assess HRQoL in a prison population in Greece and to explore the relationship between HRQoL and a set of individual sociodemographic and health related characteristics and characteristics of detention. Implementation of policies that aim at preventing the use of narcotics within the prison environment is expected to contribute to improved HRQoL in this population

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Results

Conclusion