Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Long-Stay and Ageing

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Long-Term Forensic Psychiatric Care

  • 678 Accesses

Abstract

Older forensic psychiatric patients stay in secure services longer than prisoners sentenced for the same offence, patients in general psychiatric settings and forensic psychiatric patients of all ages. Prolonged stay may reflect that service provision is far from meeting the unique needs of this population, but research in this area is very limited. Drawing from the existing literature in forensic psychiatry and in other restrictive settings, this chapter aims to (1) present data on older patients in relation to their prevalence in forensic psychiatric settings, sociodemographic characteristics, violence, mental health and individual needs; (2) present data on length of stay in comparison with other populations in secure care; and (3) report and discuss issues around the long-term care of older patients, including physical healthcare, the presence of cognitive impairment and dementia, (the potential development of) national long-term units for patients with intensive care needs and the need for age-relevant treatment and activities. Potential implications for service improvement in relation to policy-making and research are also discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
eBook
USD 16.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 89.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Mitnitski AB, Graham JE, Mogilner AJ, Rockwood K. Frailty, fitness and late-life mortality in relation to chronological and biological age. BMC Geriatr. 2002;2(1):1.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Cooney F, Braggins J. Doing time. Good practice with older people in prison—the views of prison staff. London: Prison Reform Trust; 2010.

    Google Scholar 

  3. Natarajan M, Mulvana S. New horizons: forensic mental health services for older people. Br J Psychiatry Adv. 2017;23:44–53.

    Google Scholar 

  4. Di Lorito C, Völlm B, Dening T. Ageing patients in forensic psychiatric settings: a review of the literature. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2018;33(12):1548–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Coid J, Fazel S, Kahtan N. Elderly patients admitted to secure forensic psychiatry services. J Forensic Psychiatry. 2002;13:416–27. https://doi.org/10.1080/09585180210154470.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Curtice M, Parker J, Wismayer FS, Tomison A. The elderly offender: an 11-year survey of referrals to a regional forensic psychiatric service. J Forensic Psychiatry Psychol. 2003;14:253–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/1478994031000077989.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Di Lorito C, Dening T, Völlm B. The characteristics and needs of older forensic psychiatric patients: a UK cross-sectional study. 2018. Submitted for publication.

    Google Scholar 

  8. Lightbody E, Gow RL, Gibb R. A survey of older adult patients in special secure psychiatric care in Scotland from 1998 to 2007. J Forensic Psychiatry Psychol. 2010;21:966–74. https://doi.org/10.1080/14789949.2010.504858.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Völlm B, Edworthy R, Holley J, Talbot E, Majid S, Duggan C, et al. Characteristics and needs of long-stay patients in high and medium secure settings in the UK: implications for service organisation. Southampton: NIHR Journals Library; 2017.

    Google Scholar 

  10. Wong MTH, Fenwick PBC, Lumsden J, Fenton GW, Maisey MN, Lewis P, et al. Elderly offenders in a maximum security mental hospital. Aggress Behav. 1995;21:321–4.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Office of National Statistics. Overview of the UK population: July 2017. London: Office of National Statistics; 2017.

    Google Scholar 

  12. Di Lorito C, Castelletti L, Tripi G, Gandellini MG, Dening T, Völlm B. The individual experience of aging patients and the current service provision in the context of Italian forensic psychiatry: a case study. J Forensic Nurs. 2017;13(3):118–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Frazer L. Ageing inside. school for policy studies working paper series paper number 1. University of Bristol, Bristol. 2003. Retrieved from: http://www.clinks.org/sites/default/files/basic/filesdownloads/Older%20Prisoners%20LF%20Report%20sps01_lf.pdf.

  14. Moll A. Losing track of time: Dementia and the ageing prison population. London: Mental Health Foundation; 2013. Retrieved from: http://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/content/assets/PDF/publications/losingtrack-of-time-2013.pdf?viewDStandard.

  15. Resettlement and Care for Older Ex-Offenders and Prisoners (RECOOP). 2015. Retrieved from: http://www.recoop.org.uk/pages/resources/.

  16. Yorston GA. Managing aggression and violence in older people. London: The Royal College of Psychiatrists; 2015.

    Google Scholar 

  17. Cornish N, Kimmett E, Hewson A, War S. Social care or systematic neglect? Older people on release from prison. London: Prison Reform Trust; 2016.

    Google Scholar 

  18. Davoren M, Fitzpatrick M, Caddow F, Caddow M, O’Neill C, O’Neill H, Kennedy HG. Older men and older women remand prisoners: mental illness, physical illness, offending patterns and needs. Int Psychogeriatr. 2015;27:747–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  19. Joyce J, Maschi T. “In here, time stands still.” The rights, needs and experiences of older people in prison. Dublin: Irish Penal Reform Trust; 2016.

    Google Scholar 

  20. World Health Organization. Prisons and health. Geneva: World Health Organization. 2014. Accessed 22 Mar 18. http://www.euro.who.int/__data/assets/pdf_file/0005/249188/Prisons-and-Health.pdf.

  21. Allen G, Watson C. UK prison population statistics. London: House of Commons Library; 2017. Retrieved from http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/SN04334/SN04334.pdf.

  22. Paradis C, Broner N, Maher LM, O’Rourke T. Mentally ill elderly jail detainees. J Offender Rehabil. 2000;31:77–86. https://doi.org/10.1300/J076v31n01_05.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Shah A. An audit of a specialist old age psychiatry liaison service to a medium and a high secure forensic psychiatry unit. Med Sci Law. 2006;46:99–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  24. Tomar R, Treasaden IH, Shah AK. Is there a case for a specialist forensic psychiatry service for the elderly? Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2005;20:51–6. https://doi.org/10.1002/gps.1247.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  25. Yorston G, Taylor PJ. Older patients in an English high security hospital: a qualitative study of the experiences and attitudes of patients aged 60 and over and their care staff in Broadmoor Hospital. J Forensic Psychiatry Psychol. 2009;20:255–67. https://doi.org/10.1080/14789940802327259.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  26. Steffensmeier D, Motivans M. Older men and older women in the arms of criminal law: offending patterns and sentencing outcomes. J Gerontol Ser B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2000;55(3):S141–51.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. Cullen AE, Jewell A, Tully J, Coghlan S, Dean K, Fahy T. A prospective cohort study of absconsion incidents in forensic psychiatric settings: Can we identify those at high-risk? PLoS One. 2015;10(9):e0138819.

    Google Scholar 

  28. Hare RD. The Hare psychopathy checklist—revised. Toronto: Multi-Health Systems; 1991.

    Google Scholar 

  29. Völlm B, Bartlett P, McDonald R. Ethical issues of long-term forensic psychiatric care. Ethics Med Public Health. 2016;2:36–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Ferriter M, Gedeon T, Buchan S, Findlay S, Mbulawa D, Powney M, Cormac I. Eight decades of mortality in an English high-security hospital. Crim Behav Ment Health. 2016;26:403–16.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  31. Di Lorito C, Dening T, Völlm B. Ageing in forensic psychiatric secure settings: the voice of older patients. J Forensic Psychiatry Psychol. 2018;29(6):934–60.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Di Lorito C, Dening T, Völlm B. Ageing in forensic psychiatric secure settings: the views of members of staff. J Forensic Psychiatry Psychol. 2018;2018:1–16.

    Google Scholar 

  33. Steiner E. Early release for seriously ill and elderly prisoners: should French practice be followed? Probat J. 2003;50(3):267–76.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Handtke V, Wangmo T. Ageing prisoners’ views on death and dying: contemplating end-of-life in prison. J Bioeth Inq. 2014;11(3):373–86. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11673-014-9548-x.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  35. Williams BA, Stern MF, Mellow J, Safer M, Greifinger RB. Aging in correctional custody: setting a policy agenda for older prisoner health care. Am J Public Health. 2012;102(8):1475–81.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Di Lorito C, Völlm B, Dening T. Psychiatric disorders among older prisoners: a systematic review and comparison study against older people in the community. Aging Ment Health. 2018;22(1):1–10.

    Google Scholar 

  37. Rait G, Fletcher A, Smeeth L, Brayne C, Stirling S, Nunes M, et al. Prevalence of cognitive impairment: results from the MRC trial of assessment and management of older people in the community. Age Ageing. 2005;34:242–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  38. Age UK. Later life in the United Kingdom. 2016. Retrieved from http://www.ageuk.org.uk/Documents/ENGB/Factsheets/Later_Life_UK_factsheet.pdf?dtrk=true.

  39. Alzheimer’s Society. Dementia UK update. 2016. Retrieved from https://www.alzheimers.org.uk/site/scripts/download_info.php?fileID=2323.

  40. Yorston G. Crime, mental illness, and older people. In: Dening T, Thomas A, editors. Oxford textbook of old age psychiatry. Oxford: Oxford University Press; 2013.

    Google Scholar 

  41. Baldwin J, Leete J. Behind bars: the challenges of an ageing population. Aust J Dement Care. 2012;2(1):16–9.

    Google Scholar 

  42. United Nations. International convention on the rights of persons with disabilities. New York, NY: United Nations; 2006. http://www.un.org/disabilities/convention/conventionfull.shtml. Accessed 6 Dec 2017.

  43. Fazel S, McMillan J, O’Donnell I. Dementia in prison: ethical and legal implications. J Med Ethics. 2002;28:156–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  44. The Centre for Mental Health. Secure mental health services. 2015. Retrieved Oct 27, 2017 https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/198033/National_Service_Framework_for_Older_People.pdf.

  45. Boyd-Caine T. Protecting the public?: detention and release of mentally disordered offenders. Abingdon: Routledge; 2012.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  46. Carroll A, Lyall M, Forrester A. Clinical hopes and public fears in forensic mental health. J Forensic Psychiatry Psychol. 2004;15(3):407–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  47. Rutherford M, Duggan S. Forensic mental health services: facts and figures on current provision. London: Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health; 2007.

    Google Scholar 

  48. Mattar S, Khan F. Personality disorders in older adults: diagnosis and management. Prog Neurol Psychiatry. 2017;21:22–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  49. National Institute for Health and Care Excellence. Mental wellbeing and independence in older people. NICE Guideline (NG32). 2015.

    Google Scholar 

  50. Atabay T. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Vienna: Handbook on prisoners with special needs. New York: United Nations Publications; 2009.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Medicine, Division of Rehabilitation and Ageing, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, UK

    Claudio Di Lorito

Authors
  1. Claudio Di Lorito
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Claudio Di Lorito .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Forensic Psychiatric Hospital, University Rostock, Rostock, Germany

    Birgit Völlm

  2. Pompe Foundation Department LFPC, Forensic Psychiatric Hospital, Zeeland, The Netherlands

    Peter Braun

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Di Lorito, C. (2019). Long-Stay and Ageing. In: Völlm, B., Braun, P. (eds) Long-Term Forensic Psychiatric Care. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12594-3_13

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12594-3_13

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-12593-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-12594-3

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation