Older Offenders

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The prevailing social, physical, psychological and mental health needs of older offenders require the correctional staff to be subsequently trained to better address those needs. The gap between older offenders health care needs and the prison environment posses numerous challenges for the prison administration as well as health care providers (Reimer, 2008). Often health problems and other age-related problems go undetected and untreated in a prison system that is designed for the younger offender (Handtke & Wagmo, 2014). The prison staff is often selected based off credentials and job expectations that relate to working with young offenders ( Morton,1992). In fact, some of the staff may not have personal qualities and characteristics for working with older individuals in prison. Flexibility, patience, …show more content…

As such, specialized training is required within the prison as well due to the fact that there are close to 1 out of 4 inmates that are 50 years old and above (Public Safety Canada, 2015). The Human Rights (2012) watch states that prison staff are not equipped with the understanding of how to deal with mental illnesses such as dementia and Alzheimer’s. Often untrained to recognize the needs of older offenders, the prison staff is on the front lines of the geriatric care (Human Rights Watch, 2012). The lack of awareness is not only a concern for human rights advocates and criminologist but it has become a concern for the inmates. Older offenders fear that there will be a lack of services when reaching their final days (Handtke & Wagmo, 2014). In addition, they are also concerned with the administration of medication and day-to-day medical assistance (Saunders, 2013). It is important to note that these trends are often accompanied with the growing body of literature to suggest that prevalence of crime is reduced by

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