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Changes in women's use of illicit drugs following imprisonment

Changes in women's use of illicit drugs following imprisonment
Changes in women's use of illicit drugs following imprisonment

Aim: to provide data on changes in illegal drug use in women following imprisonment.

Design: prospective cohort study.

Setting: recruitment took place in two prisons in the Midlands and South-East England and follow-up in 13 prisons across England.

Participants: a total of 505 women prisoners participated, a response rate of 82%. Measurements Questions about drug use were contained within a questionnaire which examined broad aspects of health. On entry into prison, women answered questions about daily drug use and injecting drug use prior to imprisonment. One month later the questionnaires examined drug use during this period of imprisonment.

Findings: prior to imprisonment, 53% [95% confidence interval (CI): 49-58%] of women took at least one illegal drug daily and 38% (CI: 34-42%) said they had ever injected drugs. Following imprisonment, some women continued to use drugs; 14% (CI: 10-20%) of women reported using at least one illegal drug daily and 2% (CI: 0.7-5%) of women had injected drugs. There were important changes in the types of drugs used; there was a change in use from crack and heroin to benzodiazepines and opiate substitutes. Prior to imprisonment, women most commonly used crack and heroin, but in prison the two most commonly used illegal drugs were benzodiazepines and opiate substitutes.

Conclusions: the study provides quantitative evidence of the impact of imprisonment on drug use among women. It highlights the need for enhanced drug treatment services and stronger measures to reduce the availability of illegal drugs to women in prison.

Adult, Choice Behavior, Drug Users/psychology, England/epidemiology, Female, Humans, Illicit Drugs, Prisoners/statistics & numerical data, Prospective Studies, Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiology, Women's Health, Young Adult
0965-2140
215-22
Plugge, Emma
b64d2086-6cf2-4fae-98bf-6aafa3115b35
Yudkin, Patricia
eaee777d-a15b-48f2-a3c8-bcdfe949a553
Douglas, Nicola
216ea998-4cf5-498b-aa28-96def9f400c6
Plugge, Emma
b64d2086-6cf2-4fae-98bf-6aafa3115b35
Yudkin, Patricia
eaee777d-a15b-48f2-a3c8-bcdfe949a553
Douglas, Nicola
216ea998-4cf5-498b-aa28-96def9f400c6

Plugge, Emma, Yudkin, Patricia and Douglas, Nicola (2009) Changes in women's use of illicit drugs following imprisonment. Addiction, 104 (2), 215-22. (doi:10.1111/j.1360-0443.2008.02419.x).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Aim: to provide data on changes in illegal drug use in women following imprisonment.

Design: prospective cohort study.

Setting: recruitment took place in two prisons in the Midlands and South-East England and follow-up in 13 prisons across England.

Participants: a total of 505 women prisoners participated, a response rate of 82%. Measurements Questions about drug use were contained within a questionnaire which examined broad aspects of health. On entry into prison, women answered questions about daily drug use and injecting drug use prior to imprisonment. One month later the questionnaires examined drug use during this period of imprisonment.

Findings: prior to imprisonment, 53% [95% confidence interval (CI): 49-58%] of women took at least one illegal drug daily and 38% (CI: 34-42%) said they had ever injected drugs. Following imprisonment, some women continued to use drugs; 14% (CI: 10-20%) of women reported using at least one illegal drug daily and 2% (CI: 0.7-5%) of women had injected drugs. There were important changes in the types of drugs used; there was a change in use from crack and heroin to benzodiazepines and opiate substitutes. Prior to imprisonment, women most commonly used crack and heroin, but in prison the two most commonly used illegal drugs were benzodiazepines and opiate substitutes.

Conclusions: the study provides quantitative evidence of the impact of imprisonment on drug use among women. It highlights the need for enhanced drug treatment services and stronger measures to reduce the availability of illegal drugs to women in prison.

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More information

Accepted/In Press date: 8 October 2008
e-pub ahead of print date: 15 January 2009
Published date: 15 January 2009
Keywords: Adult, Choice Behavior, Drug Users/psychology, England/epidemiology, Female, Humans, Illicit Drugs, Prisoners/statistics & numerical data, Prospective Studies, Substance-Related Disorders/epidemiology, Women's Health, Young Adult

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 485330
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/485330
ISSN: 0965-2140
PURE UUID: 9594f08e-f2bd-4012-8907-44454f93bfda
ORCID for Emma Plugge: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-8359-0071

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 04 Dec 2023 17:43
Last modified: 11 Jul 2024 02:06

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Contributors

Author: Emma Plugge ORCID iD
Author: Patricia Yudkin
Author: Nicola Douglas

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