Many Women Return to Prison As There are No Substance Abuse Treatment Programs

The results of a study published in the American Journal of Public Health stated that women prisoners were more likely to return to the prison even after release with no participation in substance abuse treatment programs. Most of the women in Canada were found to prone to substance abuse and mental health issues because of the trauma experienced in their lives, such as childhood, sexual or physical abuse, or domestic abuse.

A program called the Community Relapse Prevention and Maintenance program was conducted in 2003 by the Correctional Service of Canada. It was especially for women on parole from six federal prisons. 20, two-hour group sessions were offered on a weekly basis in the program. Around 58.9 percent of women in the program were cocaine abusers and 44.3% of them were crack cocaine abusers. It was found from the study that women who were not exposed to the treatment program were more than 10 times likely to be return to prison within 6 months.

Of the federal prison population in Canada, women constitute 5%, though the number had tripled in the past 20 years. About one-third of them were convicted of drug-related offenses. It was found that drug-using offenders are twice likely to have unstable housing in the community. They are less able to manage stress and are often prone to hospital visits for mental health issues. The study quoted the importance of provision of treatment programs for such women. However, many barriers like childcare and high unemployment rates had been preventing them to participate in substance abuse treatment programs.