Working to identify support needs for staff working within prison environments.

Prisons represent intense sites of mental distress and suffering. Epidemiological studies demonstrate consistently high rates of mental disorder amongst prisoners globally. Suicide rates are also high particularly at times of transition. In the UK, healthcare professionals within prison environments are charged with providing clinical care that is ‘equivalent’ to that which could be expected to be received within the general community. However, health and social care work within prison is complex, demanding and frequently involves challenging inter-agency working. In this context it is perhaps unsurprising that levels of ‘burnout’ amongst professionals are high.

The process of working alongside prisoners can be seen as representing a form of ‘emotional labour’ - that is, it exerts a toll on the practitioner as well as the prisoners themselves. As in all areas of health and social care, we need to develop appropriate means of addressing and supporting professionals in this process. In the context of prison based work the question arises as to what form of supervision is best suited to address this need? Who should be involved in such supervision (health and social care staff only or custodial officers and other staff as well)? How can we measure the impact of such supervision? The proposed project seeks to address these questions. It is anticipated that the successful applicant will develop the project in line with their own emerging interests. However, it is anticipated that conducting an initial literature review will allow the area of enquiry to be appropriately mapped and the research question finalised before an appropriate research approach is developed. Findings will be developed into a care support model, through a of consensus seeking process, ready for implementation and further trial in real life practice, with consideration given to the development of appropriate measures to gauge the success of any such implementation.

For international students we also offer a unique 4 year PhD programme that gives you the opportunity to undertake an accredited Teaching Certificate whilst carrying out an independent research project across a range of biological, medical and health sciences. For more information please visit www.internationalphd.manchester.ac.uk.