Incarceration of Women in the United States: An Influential Determinant of Maternal Child Health

This recorded lecture was created in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Public Health in the Department of Maternal and Child Health, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The United States incarcerates more people than any other country. Since 1972, the number of people incarcerated in prisons and jails has increased by 600%, with a 2010 prison and jail population of roughly 2.2 million (Mauer, 2013). This increase of incarceration has been due predominantly to changes in sentencing policies rather than changes in crime rates (The Sentencing Project, 2014a). This presentation is intended to offer an introduction to the importance of incarceration as a social determinant of health in the United States, with a focus on the population of adult women. Public health's emphasis on identifying and preventing root causes poises the field well to increase partnerships and advocacy for prevention and improved health of all individuals in our community. This presentation provides an overview of some of the known health impacts of the incarceration system on adult women the United States. It covers concepts of health equity, social determinants of health, health in all policies as they relate to mass incarceration. Health risks and challenges specific to women who are incarcerated will be included, and trends in research on maternal child health indicators in relation to incarceration. This lecture will provide a starting point to stimulate your interest in learning more about the multitude of links between incarceration and public health.Master of Public Healt