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Prison

NSW Government

 

NSW Legislation

Corrections Health Service (CHS) : Drugs & Alcohol
Patterns of drug use highlight the importance of ensuring comprehensive screening and assessment of inmates on entry. The longer-term goals are to identify a treatment program to suit the needs of the individual and to facilitate continuity of care on both reception to and release from the correctional system.Comprehensive drug and alcohol service incorporate: Detoxification Services, the Methadone Maintenance Program and the Drug Court Program. Further information on these are available from the CHS Website.  

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Australian Federal Government

 

Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC)

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Governments of Other States & Territories

 

Queensland Government

  • Queensland Alcohol and Drug Foundation: Pre-Release Prison Program: Alcohol and Drugs
    Contains information on the alcohol and drug programs available in Queensland Correctional Centres.
  • Drugs and Prisoners in Queensland
    A paper given at the 2nd International Conference on Drugs and Young People in April 2001 about the use of drugs in Quensland jails by adult prisoners. It identifies key issues and challenges for corrective services such as use by minority groups; mental health problems; the correlation between illicit drug use and criminal recidivism; the relationship between intravenous drug use and blood borne diseases; and the tension between corrections and public health agendas.

South Australia Drug Summit: Illicit Drugs and Correctional Services
The South Australian Drug Summit had a specific theme on illicit drugs and correctional services. This links to the details of the issues paper prepared for delegates attending the South Australian Drugs Summit. June 2002

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Australian NGO's

 

Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD): Supply, demand and harm reduction strategies in Australian prisons: implementation, cost and evaluation
July 2004

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International

 

Beckley Foundation: Incaceration of drug offenders: Costs and impacts
This paper looks at the pros and cons of pursuing a policy of large-scale arrest and incarceration of drug users. Taking the USA as the main example of this approach, the authors examine the costs of incarceration in terms of public expenditure, and consequential impacts on health and social cohesion, and the impact on drug use prevalence and markets through incapacitation of users, access to treatment, and deterrence. The paper concludes that, while harsh penalties can have a marginal impact on the number of drug users, this is likely to be outweighed by the costs involved. 2005

Bureau of Prisons (BOP) (United States)

Drug and Alcohol Services Information System (DASIS): Substance Abuse Treatment Admissions Referred by the Criminal Justice System, 2002
This report examines substance abuse treatment admissions referred by the criminal justice system and compares their characteristics with all other admissions. July 2004

European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA): Assistance to drug users in European Union prisons
An abridged version of the study describing the characteristics of drug use in prisons as well the different assistance measures targeted at drug using inmates. The report contains primary information and basic data on the health status of prisoners as well as on drug use and drug-related harm, prevention and treatment practices, best practices, standards and evaluation initiatives.

Human Rights Watch: Collateral Casualties - Children of Incarcerated Drug Offenders in New York
This report highlights the impact of New York State's Rockefeller Drug Laws on children. For over a quarter of a century, New York's drug laws have mandated severe prison sentences for drug offenses and have filled the state's prisons with low-level offenders. Many of the 150,000 prison sentences handed down to drug offenders have been so disproportionate to the crime that they violate basic principles of justice and internationally recognized human rights. Excessively long sentences can constitute cruel and counterproductive punishment for those who are incarcerated and such sentences may needlessly harm the children left behind. June 2002

Northern Ireland Prison Service
Drugs Policy and Strategy
The Northern Ireland Prison Service has a specific Drugs Policy and Strategy. This policy states that when a prisoner is identified as having a drug related problem they are to be offered assistance to address that problem as appropriate. This includes primary care, specialist referrals and programmes which are targeted at substance abuse. 
Illicit Drug Finds
Statistics of specific drugs that are found.

Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) - United States
Therapeutic Communities In Correctional Settings. The Prison Based TC Standards Development Project
This project aims to develop minimum standards for operating modified therapeutic community (TC) programs in prison settings. This links to a report on standards revision produced in November 1999.

Prisons, Drugs and Society: Conference: Speech by Baroness Vivien Stern 

UK Government

US Government

  •  Drug Use, Testing, and Treatment in US Jails
    This report describes the drug involvement of jail inmates and the level of drug use, testing, and treatment in jails. 2000
  • Prison and Jail Inmates at Midyear 2001
    Data on prison and jail inmates. This report provides the number of inmates and the overall incarceration rate and offers figures on trends.
  • Prisoners in 2002
    This bulletin provides State and Federal prison population data, including data on incarcerated drug offenders. July 2003
  • Research for Practice
    This report provides an overview of the South Idaho Correctional Institution's Residential Substance Abuse Treatment program. It looks at ways to deal with the many parolees who are returned to prison because their abuse of alcohol and drugs contributes to their committing a new offense. To break the drug-crime nexus, this program targets parole-violating inmates with substance abuse problems. May 2003

World Health Organization: Prisons, Drugs and Society
A concensus Statement on Principles, Policies and Practices published in September 2002 and from the World Health Organization (WHO)

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