Prison Health

We believe that everyone has a right to the best attainable standard for health – even in prisons. Our thematic work on Prison Health seeks to address the disparities in health status and access to quality health services for people in prisons.

Many of our main public health concerns are exacerbated in prisons – including communicable and non-communicable diseases as well as mental disorders. Despite confinement, prison health concerns the whole society – one third of inmates leave prison and enter the public every year. To ensure that prisons do not become breeding places for diseases, we must provide the highest standard for care also in prisons.

Prison health is an often neglected topic in international health cooperation. Being one of the only actors in the field in Europe, our Expert Group on Prison Health is a valued partner of the WHO, providing regional knowledge and expertise.