A Call for Help: Women Offenders' Reflections on Trauma Care

Abstract

Female prisoners have extensive trauma histories and complex treatment needs that contribute to their criminality, yet trauma screening and treatment is not widespread in prisons. This article examines qualitative data gathered from face-to-face interviews with 31 female offenders in Canadian prisons. Using a grounded theory approach we demonstrate an unmet need for trauma-specific services for female offenders. These services go beyond trauma-informed practice and treat the psychological and behavioral sequelae of trauma exposure (e.g., mental illness and addictions) to facilitate recovery. The findings suggest that women in prison want and need specific treatment for trauma exposure. Integrating trauma-specific services involves a cultural shift within the prison environment that might be achieved by positioning trauma within the risk–need–responsivity model as an additional risk factor for criminality. Although counter to the public health perspective that trauma is a health concern, it is a way to ensure that trauma becomes part of the battery of care in corrections so that the needs of traumatized women are addressed while they are in custody. This was a unique opportunity to learn about what women would like to help deal with their experiences of trauma.

Keywords:

• trauma
• women offenders
• substance abuse
• mental health
• qualitative

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We offer our sincere thanks to the women who graciously agreed to be part of the study and shared their personal experiences. The Centre for Research on Inner City Health (CRICH) is part of the the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute of St. Michael's Hospital. The opinions, results, and conclusions reported in this article are those of the authors.

Notes

Refer to the following links for information on the Circles of Change program (http://www.csc-scc.gc.ca/text/rsrch/smmrs/rs/rs10-01/rs10-01-eng.shtml), Sixties Scoop (http://www.kleinlyons.com/class/aboriginal-sixties-scoop/), and Oka Crisis (http://www.canadiana.ca/citm/themes/aboriginals/aboriginals13_e.html#oka).