Social dimensions play a critical role in determining the onset and severity of HCV in prison by influencing the resources prisoners have to manage health. Prison is a community organized whereby prison culture operates to govern prisoners’ behaviour; risk or health-seeking. A social hierarchy regulates prison operations with convicts being the overseers. c In addition, the prison population is composed of inmates who differ greatly from convicts. c Convicts are prisoners who don’t participate in self-help programs or feel the urge to try to cut their prison time down. c Instead, they promote alliances and encourage inherent qualities of prison culture; body modification such as tattooing and piercing, and drug use, usually using unsanitary
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“them” mentality and dissuades prisoners from seeking help or treatment.c In the instance of HCV, prison culture amplifies transmission by encouraging unsafe needle usage in the form of body modification, mainly tattooing, and injection drug use (IDU). Over 45% of prisoners receive a tattoo in prison a and 58% of prisoners develop HCV through IDU.b Social capital theory and social networks help explain how prison culture increases the onset and severity of HCV in prison by acting through those social dimensions. …show more content…
c Additionally, these resources include trust, norms and associations, all of which are imperative in a prison setting. c Trust creates social networks which then dictate associations and the norms which follow aligning with a certain group. c Essentially, trust between prisoners produces alliances, and loyalty to these alliances is proven through partaking in prison culture norms; tattooing and IDU/contraband alcohol (brew) consumption. c Further investigation into the operations of prison culture unveils the knowledge that inmates are pressured by convicts to participate in prison culture, and refusing to do so results in massive repercussions, forcing inmates to abide by prison rulings out of fear. Consequently, these dynamics increase the onset of HCV by increasing the amount of unsafe needle-usage in prison populations. c Moreover, severity of HCV is also increased by the consumption of brew as this increases the progression of liver deterioration. Similarly, progression of HCV is also amplified by the system versus prisoner mentality as prisoners will refuse to seek treatment. c It is perceived as incongruous to ask for help from healthcare professionals who are aligned with authority figures. c Likewise, asking for help would cause a prisoner to be seen as weak as leave them vulnerable to the consequences of the community. c Prisoners’ decision to conform to
“them” mentality and dissuades prisoners from seeking help or treatment.c In the instance of HCV, prison culture amplifies transmission by encouraging unsafe needle usage in the form of body modification, mainly tattooing, and injection drug use (IDU). Over 45% of prisoners receive a tattoo in prison a and 58% of prisoners develop HCV through IDU.b Social capital theory and social networks help explain how prison culture increases the onset and severity of HCV in prison by acting through those social dimensions. …show more content…
c Additionally, these resources include trust, norms and associations, all of which are imperative in a prison setting. c Trust creates social networks which then dictate associations and the norms which follow aligning with a certain group. c Essentially, trust between prisoners produces alliances, and loyalty to these alliances is proven through partaking in prison culture norms; tattooing and IDU/contraband alcohol (brew) consumption. c Further investigation into the operations of prison culture unveils the knowledge that inmates are pressured by convicts to participate in prison culture, and refusing to do so results in massive repercussions, forcing inmates to abide by prison rulings out of fear. Consequently, these dynamics increase the onset of HCV by increasing the amount of unsafe needle-usage in prison populations. c Moreover, severity of HCV is also increased by the consumption of brew as this increases the progression of liver deterioration. Similarly, progression of HCV is also amplified by the system versus prisoner mentality as prisoners will refuse to seek treatment. c It is perceived as incongruous to ask for help from healthcare professionals who are aligned with authority figures. c Likewise, asking for help would cause a prisoner to be seen as weak as leave them vulnerable to the consequences of the community. c Prisoners’ decision to conform to