COVID-19 and prisoners in India: Most neglected population and their mental health needs

Abstract

The corona virus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemicimpacted the world substantially. It heightened mentalhealth problems but compromised the delivery of mentalhealth care services in general, risking the deterioration ofmental health in already vulnerable individuals. Prisonersare one of the vulnerable groups with diverse mental healthneeds. Limited and variable COVID-19 testing, concernsabout mental health, and COVID-19 outbreak in prisonshave raised concerns. This essay presents a synthesis ofrelevant literature highlighting the COVID-19 situation inprisons, its impact on prisoners’ mental health, and recentmental health initiatives. While recognizing additionaldifficulties at prisons, we can learn from the evidence andbest practices. We propose a multi pronged approach tooptimize the support to the staff and prisoners to protectthem from COVID-19 and maintain their mental healthand offer equitable health care services during the COVID19 pandemic and beyond.