Passports to Advantage: Health and capacity building as a basis for social integration

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Prisoners as a group are characterised by chronic social disadvantage, high rates of risky drug use, and poor physical and mental health. Many prisoners enter custody with these problems, and despite the existence of intervention programs in prison, many leave prison with the same problems. This is particularly true of women and Indigenous prisoners. Little is known about what happens to prisoners once they return to the community – what we do know is that the majority will re-offend at some point in their life, and that almost a third will return to prison within two years of release. In the weeks following release, ex-prisoners also face a massively increased risk of premature death due to drug overdose, accidents, suicide and other causes. Despite this, the few post-release programs that do exist for ex-prisoners in Australia are fragmented, under-funded and based on limited evidence. This project will conduct a randomised, controlled trial of a post-release intervention for adult prisoners in Queensland. Participants will undergo a comprehensive health assessment prior to release, and before release will receive a ‘health passport’ which will encourage and empower them to seek out appropriate health and psychosocial support in their local community. Participants will also receive telephone support from trained support staff, in the first 4 weeks following release. These 4 weeks are known to be a critical time for the reintegration of ex-prisoners. The impact of the Passport to Advantage intervention will be assessed through telephone interviews 4, 12 and 26 week post-release, and by accessing correctional and health (Medicare Australia) records for participants two years post-release. The findings of the study will inform the development of an evidence-based post-release intervention for prisoners in Australia and elsewhere, as well as providing an unprecedented insight into the post-release experiences of prisoners in Queensland.