The health and Well being of prison officers

The health and Well being of prison officers King's Bench Prison in London as drawn by Augustus Pugin and Thomas Rowlandson for Rudolph Ackermann's Microcosm of London. (1808 -11)

Aims and Objectives v Provide a brief history of prisons and their portrayal through the media v Outline the basic training, and the job role of a prison officer v Detail the issues, both psychological and physical that a prison officer will face. (That's the plan anyway!)

Prisons through the ages – Punishment to Rehabilitation. v. Oubliettes to dungeons- Horrible punishment or Gothic fairy tale? - Most ‘dungeons’ are exaggerated for the public – They were probably store rooms v. Prisons used as holding places before punishment was decided -execution -flogging -transportation Tower of London etc. . . Most long term prisoners were political - You were either released, or ‘punished’

Debtors prison Debtors sent to prison on the whim of their creditors -No release until debt paid- No earning money in prison -Majority of prisoners in 1700 -1800’s -Charles Dickens wrote extensively on the affect of Debtors prison due to his father 1865 Prisons Act ‘hard bed, hard board and hard labour‘ Pointless labour as punishment -tread wheels, shot drill – Exhausting physical labour with no purpose Labour Gangs, public work -Prisoners used to work dangerous and physically demanding jobs

A timeline of Reform v 1787 Transportation to Australia started v 1800 75% of all crimes are 'petty theft‘ v 1815 Gaolers paid – No longer having to rely on money from prisoners v 1820 s The 'Bloody Code' Over 200 offences could be punished by hanging v 1823 Gaol Act Prisons must be healthy, and that men and women prisoners are to be kept separate v 1840 The 'Bloody Code' Only 5 crimes could now be punished by hanging v 1854 Reformatory School Reform Schools are set up for children to stop them from committing crime again, and to teach them a trade v 1857 Transportation stopped v 1869 Imprisonment for Debt stopped v 1877 National Prison Service – All prisons now controlled by the government v 1900 Only 2 crimes now punishable by hanging v 1964 Last men hanged for murder in the UK v 1965 Death penalty abolished for murder

20 th Century prisons v 1895 Gladstone report – “prisoners should leave as better people” v. Labour with no purpose replaced with learning a trade v. Prisoners allowed to earn a wage to support them on release v. Clothes and haircuts allowed, uniforms and shaven heads phased out v. Better facilities for visiting relatives/friends v. Education and libraries in all prisons v. Incentives and earned privilege schemes.

ADX Colorado v“A clean version of hell” v. Everything in the prison is made from poured concrete - beds, chairs and desks v. Prisoners spend entire sentences in solitary confinement vstaff of 347 people beds for 490 inmates houses 404 inmates v. The clearest example of a dramatic shift back to punishment, not reform. v. Lack of liberty is no longer the punishment – total lack of interaction and social deprivation.

Pelican Bay v‘Super max’ prison (SHU) v. Design capacity- 2280 v. Current population- 3461 v. Current number of staff- 1548 (492 of which are ‘support’) (2006/2007) v. SHU implements 23 hour solitary lockdown v. Prisoners allowed 1 hour outside cells v. TV and radio allowed v Feb 2000 riot between 200 inmates led to real bullets being used, and 1 inmate killed. v. Madrid vs. Gomez – 3600 inmates complained of cruel and unusual punishment v. Vaughn Dortch- Prisoner forced into boiling water after refusing to bathe

The Stanford Prison Experiment §Students randomly assigned to guard or prisoner §“Prisoners” were arrested on a quiet Sunday and driven away by a cop car – Blindfolded, stripped and deloused before being given a paper smock, prison number and heavy ankle chain. §“Guards” were given uniforms, reflective glasses, whistles and Clubs – They were not given training or told how to act, it was completely up to them. § 2 nd day – Riot broke out – All “guards” were called in to quash Rebellion §Privilege cells, food shortages, psychological abuse and physical punishments all soon followed § 2 week experiment called off after 6 days.

Prison Officer Assessment – RAD (Recruitment Assessment Day) §Documentation check and vetting. §Short medical – eyesight, weight/height, Blood Pressure test (fail BP- Not allowed to run fitness test – A nod to cardiovascular disease research? ) §Fitness test- bleep test, basic agility (running around cones), Dyna Grip, Shield test. §Role Plays- 4, 10 minute role plays based on situations “ a prison officer may encounter” -’crooked’ officers -disruptive prisoners -bullying and self harming -visitors issues -depression and isolation §Passed? Congratulations! You can now train in a prison.

Now what? §Week 1 – Establishment Induction. Meet and greet fellow staff, and shadow officers and managers to see how things are run. §Week 2 – 7 - Training centre Classroom learning Scenario training Control and Restraint Team building Includes formal assessment § Week 8 - ‘Establishment based training’

Care vs. Custody • Contribute effectively to the safe and secure custody of Prisoners. • Prepare reports as required in a timely manner • Follow set procedures for dealing with Prisoner applications • Comply with audit requirements • Apply authorised control and restraint procedures where appropriate • Encourage Prisoners to deal with personal challenges through offending behaviour programmes • Uphold respect for Prisoners, their property, rights and dignity • Act as Personal Officer to a group of Prisoners http: //www. hmprisonservice. gov. uk/careersandjobs/becomingaprisonofficer/prisonofficer jobdescription/

The Usual Suspects. . . §Role ambiguity §Role overload §Training §Management styles/ accountability/feedback §Shift patterns and working hours §Work Life balance

The inside story P. O’s have more than the usual job stressors to deal with. . . §Locks. . . . And more locks! – What other environment is akin to a prison? §Violence against staff is not uncommon – 121% increase in assaults on female prison officers since 2000, with the number rising from 232 to 513. Male prisons saw a 58% increase in attacks on officers, up from 1, 767 in 2000 to 2, 804 in 2006. They also suffer from a less than favourable reputation in society §‘Hardcore’ culture §Public ignorance §Media bias, and press storms.

"should review its capability to carry out night time clinical observations of prisoners in the Healthcare Centre".

“inadequate reception health screen, incomplete communication of Stephen's behaviour at court and a poorly prepared physical environment, meant little was done to safeguard him. " They clearly have a duty of care towards every prisoner, and they clearly failed in Stephen's case. "

§STRESS!! §A logical conclusion? §Burnout - Emotional regulation depersonalises staff -Burnout is shown to be a product of the environment, not personal characteristics § Unable to regulate emotions – Ennui and apathy set in §Lowered job satisfaction- Job roles become more stressful- Stress and Burnout § High social support is a vital component to lowering stress levels. . But. . §Presence of stressors in the workplace can lead to decrease in altruistic behaviour towards colleagues

Environment and Stress §Noise -Angry and stressed people will become significantly more aggressive when subjected to uncontrollable noise (Donnerstein and Wilson 76) §Heat -’Long hot summer effect’ – The hotter the temperature, the more aggressive people become §Crowding -Intensifies reactions, causes stimulus overload, and removes perceived control over situations. -As of 30 June 2009, 86 prison establishments in England Wales (61% of the estate) were overcrowded. In 13 of these establishments the population was at least 150% of the CNA figure.

Psychosocial work environment and Sickness (Rugulies et al 2007) §Emotional Demands §Low support from supervisors §Role conflict §High client contact §Exposure to violence and threats All mediating factors to increasing sickness absence.

Coping Strategies §Psychological -Counselling / talking it through --Internal/ external locus of control --Personality types Do type A’s actively search for stress? §Social -Perpetuating the lad culture through drinking Strengthens work relationships. . . weakens arteries -Drugs ( Medication or otherwise? ) -Junk food , binge eating, and the obesity culture -Cathartic violence (video games/ violent sports)

Cardio Vascular Disease §Stress responses leading to increased blood pressure §Suppression of immune system §inhibition of growth §damage to muscle tissue . . . all symptoms of long term exposure to stress hormones §Coping styles that include drink and fatty foods add cholesterol and fats to the body and bloodstream. §A job full of stressors + Fatty Foods + More stress +drink = Heart attack and stroke likelihood increased dramatically

§Work/Life balance -Physically separated partners suffer loss of sleep and increase in anxiety -Sleep is a buffer against stress and discomfort -Sleep deprivation leads to decrease in concentration, efficiency and swings in mood -Is it possible to switch off? “Is there a doctor in the house? ” -Social and physical activities allow for time to recover from the effort of the day - Recovery allows for reduced fatigue and greater well- being

Depression and PTSD §Burnout and emotional dissonance exacerbated by ongoing job stress -Depression characterised by ennui and apathy §Stress in decision authority §psychological demands §job insecurity §social support from superior and co-workers – All positively correlated to formation of depression §Acute stress disorder caused by violent trauma -Prisoner attacks on guards are not rare – Isolated but violent experiences -Psychological affect strengthens and drives forward cyclical relationship between stress and depression -Alters perceptions of emotion and moral direction

Occupational Health resources §Staff Care and Welfare teams for stress § Occupational Health Medical Adviser (OHMA) on site (But only in some prisons) § Health checks and NHS referrals. . . Only implemented in the last few decades.

In Summary. . . §Prisons have gone through many dramatic shifts, and will continue to do so in the future §Media representations of prisons may form the only experience we ever have – But they cannot be trusted §Prison officers are subject to not only the usual job stressors, but the unique issues caused by the nature of their work §Health and well being is vital for quality of life, but is being adversely affected by the work we do.

References • • Donnerstein, E. , Wilson, D. (1976) Effects of Noise and Perceived Control on Ongoing and Subsequent Aggressive Behaviour. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 34 (5) 774781 Diamond, L. , Hicks, A. , Otter-Henderson, K. (2008) Every time you go away: Changes in Affect, Behaviour, and Physiology Associated With Travel-Related Separations From Romantic Partners. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 95 (2) 385 -403 Holmes, S. , Mac. Innes, D. (2003) Contributors to stress among Prison Service staff. The British journal of forensic practice 5 (2) 16 -24 Driskell, J. , Salas, E. , Johnston, J. (1999) Does stress lead to a loss of team perspective? Group dynamics: Theory, Research and Practice 3 (4) 291 -302 Wang, J. , Patten, S. (2001) Perceived Work Stress and Major Depression in the Canadian Employed Population, 20 -49 Years Old. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology 6 (4) 283 - 289 Rugulies, R. , Christensen, K. , Borritz, M. , Villadsen, E. , Bultmann. U. , Kristensen, T (2007) The contribution of the psychosocial work environment to sickness absence in human service workers: Results of a 3 yr follow up study. Work and stress 21 (4) 293 -311 Jex, s. , Adams, G. , Bachrach, D. , Sorenson, S. (2003) The impact of situational constraints, role stressors and commitment on employee altruism. Journal of occupational health psychology 8 (3) 171 -180

And some more. . . • • Schmidt, K. , Neubach, B. , Heuer, H. (2007) Self control demands, cognitive control deficits, and burnout. Work and stress 21 (2) 142 -154 Gerstein, L. , Topp, C. , Correll, G. (1987) The role of the environment and person when predicting burnout among correctional personnel. Criminal justice and behaviour 14 (3) 352369 Owen, S. (2006) Occupational stress among correctional supervisors. The prison Journal 86 (2) 164 -181 Hamilton, N. , Catley, D. , Karlson, C. (2007) Sleep and the Affective Response to Stress and Pain. Health psychology 26 (3) 288 -295