Forget Me Not: Dementia in Prison

The number of older adults with dementia in U.S. prisons is rapidly rising. Yet, the vast majority of this marginalized subgroup of the aging population is left neglected behind bars without access to adequate medical and mental health care services. We assert that proactive, interdisciplinary colla...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Gerontologist 2012-08, Vol.52 (4), p.441-451
Main Authors: Maschi, Tina, Kwak, Jung, Ko, Eunjeong, Morrissey, Mary B
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
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Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Aging
Aging - psychology
At Risk Persons
Biological and medical sciences
Correctional Institutions
Dementia
Dementia - epidemiology
Dementia - psychology
Elderly
Experience
Female
Gerontology
Health Care Services
Health Services
Health Services Accessibility
Health Services for the Aged
Health Services Needs and Demand
Humans
Institutionalized Persons
Male
Medical sciences
Mental health care
Mental Health Services
Mental Health Services - organization & administration
Middle Aged
Miscellaneous
Older Adults
Older people
Patient Advocacy
Prevalence
Prisoners
Prisoners - psychology
Prisoners - statistics & numerical data
Prisons
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Risk Factors
Senility
Social Justice
Sociocultural Factors
United States - epidemiology
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Summary:The number of older adults with dementia in U.S. prisons is rapidly rising. Yet, the vast majority of this marginalized subgroup of the aging population is left neglected behind bars without access to adequate medical and mental health care services. We assert that proactive, interdisciplinary collaborative efforts to improve practice, policy, and research and to develop a high-quality evidence-based continuum of care for this aging population are urgently needed. The overarching goals of this paper are to raise awareness of the life and experiences of persons with dementia in prison and to stimulate discussion, research, and advocacy efforts for this forgotten subgroup of older Americans. We describe the growing number of older adults with dementia in U.S. prisons, high-risk factors for dementia present in the prison population, and the life and experience of persons with dementia in the culture and environment of prison that is primarily not designed for them. We review the current state of services and programs for dementia in prison. We conclude by proposing practice, policy, and research-related priority areas and strategies for interdisciplinary gerontological responses.
ISSN:0016-9013
1758-5341
DOI:10.1093/geront/gnr131