Introduction
The US correctional system is one of the most advanced in the world, but it can face difficulties re-educating prisoners. FCI Danbury was chosen as the case example because of the need to focus on the position of women in the American correctional system. Issues identified relate to the lack of gender specificity of policies, violence, and prisoners’ vulnerability to infectious diseases.
FCI Danbury
FCI Danbury is a federal low-security prison for female prisoners. The Federal Bureau of Prisons and the Ministry of Justice control the institution. The prison’s organizational structure consists of the main low-security location and an additional camp for offenders with minimal security (Federal Bureau of Prisons, 2021).
In FCI Danbury, there is no common guide to the specific needs of pregnant prisoners, which leads to insufficient care (Alirezaei & Roudsari, 2020). FCI Danbury lacks methods for combating violence against prisoners (McCauley et al., 2020). The prison faced the consequences of COVID-19, being forced to change the imprisonment to house arrests due to the spread of infection (William, 2020). The problems identified in FCI Danbury are characteristic of female prisons: violence, discrimination, and insecurity from infections.
Programs for Prisoners
The US correctional system offers prison programs of general education, therapy for women with post-traumatic stress disorder, and a drug addiction treatment program. An important role is played by religious programs that help prisoners find the meaning of improvement (Muhammad & Gaudet, 2023). These programs are also available for prisoners in FCI Danbury. In the past, prisoners’ assistance programs, such as maintaining treatment of disorders or drug addiction, were not considered mandatory. With the development of society, prisons began to improve and gradually moved into the status of institutions that help a person adapt to society.
Alirezaei and Roudsari (2020) review international principles for the care of pregnant women in prisons. The study shows that the United States has the highest standards for assisting pregnant prisoners (Alirezaei & Roudsari, 2020). However, there is a gap in addressing the mental health aspects of pregnant women. The study makes it possible to find issues in international practices and link them with the US experience to improve them.
McCauley et al. (2020) explore the effects of traumatic prison experiences among women. The results of the study provide the basis for considering the experience of the traumatic authorities in imprisonment among women for effectively addressing post-traumatic stress disorder (McCauley et al., 2020). The conclusions of the study are relevant for global practice since violence against women is a common occurrence all over the world.
Muhammad and Gaudet (2023) describe the approach to the prisoner correction system, emphasizing the importance of religious experience as an aspect of subsequent social adjustment. This description helps understand personal experiences of problems in correctional institutions and the importance of special programs for prisoners. In global practice, religion is recognized as one way to instill moral and ethical guidelines.
William (2020) addresses the important topic of infectious disease control in prisons using the COVID-19 pandemic as an example. One measure to combat the spread of the infection in FCI Danbury was an increase in the number of house arrests, which caused public disapproval (William, 2020). The study highlights the importance of developing new measures to combat disease in prisons and is consistent with the corresponding trend in world practice.
Conclusion
The selected sources are relevant not only in relation to the system in the United States but are also guided by global practice. The health of pregnant women and the need for special care for them in prisons is a global problem. The relationship between the experience of imprisonment and post-traumatic stress disorder applies to all prisoners from all over the world.
Support for prisoners through educational and religious programs is accepted by the common practice of the need not for punishment but for re-education. Administrators from different states are looking for ways to combat the spread of prison infections. All sources emphasize the universal problems of the world’s correctional system.
References
Alirezaei, S., & Roudsari, R. L. (2020). Promoting health care for pregnant women in prison: A review of international guidelines. Iranian Journal of Nursing and Midwifery Research, 25(2), 91. Web.
Federal Bureau of Prisons. (2021). FCI Danbury. Web.
McCauley, H. L., Richie, F., Hughes, S., Johnson, J. E., Zlotnick, C., Rosen, R. K., & Kuo, C. C. (2019). Trauma, power, and intimate relationships among women in prison. Violence against Women, 26(6-7), 659-674. Web.
Muhammad, J., & Gaudet, K. S. (2023). Life support: Organizing for justice inside and outside of prison. In Gaudet K.S. (Ed.), What is a criminal? Answers from inside the US justice system (pp. 28-37). Routledge.
William, P. (2020). Increasing use of home confinement at institutions most affected by COVID-19: Memorandum for Director of Bureau of Prisons. Federal Sentencing Reporter, 32(5), 292-293. Web.