Predictors of Illicit Drug Use among Prisoners
BACKGROUND:
The
United States of America currently has the highest incarceration rate in the
world, and approximately 80% of incarcerated individuals have a history of
illicit drug use. Despite institutional prohibitions, drug use continues in
prison, and is associated with a range of negative outcomes.
OBJECTIVES:
To
assess the relationship between prison drug use, duration of incarceration, and
a range of covariates.
RESULTS:
Most
participants self-reported a history of illicit drug use (77.5%). Seven percent
reportedly used drugs during the previous six months of incarceration (n =
100). Participants who had been incarcerated for more than a year were less
likely than those incarcerated for longer than a year to report using drugs. Participants aged 37-89 were less likely than
younger prisoners to use drugs. Heroin users
were twice as likely as nonheroin users to use drugs; crack cocaine users were also twice as likely as participants with
no history of crack cocaine usage to report drug use.
CONCLUSIONS:
Correctional
institutions should be used as a resource to offer evidence-based services to
curb drug usage. Drug treatment programs for younger prisoners, heroin and
crack cocaine users, and at the beginning of a prisoner's sentence should be
considered for this population.
- 1 School of Nursing , Columbia University , New York , New York , USA.
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