Concern for prisoners not getting head injuries diagnosed at Whanganui Prison

The exact number of people in Whanganui Prison with brain injuries is not known by the Department of Corrections. Photo / Bevan Conley

A Whanganui family violence intervention worker says prisoners’ head injuries are going “undiagnosed” as the Department of Corrections does not screen for brain injuries.

Research by the Chief Psychologists’ Office at the Department of Corrections has identified that more than 60 per cent of New Zealand men in prison have suffered a traumatic brain injury (TBI) during their lifetime.

This can cause a range of cognitive and emotional difficulties that often appear as behavioural or management issues within prison.

Department of Corrections’ director of mental health and addictions Emma Gardner said Corrections did not explicitly screen for brain injuries but the information may be captured through the health assessment process.

“We are not able to provide you with the exact number of people in prison with a brain injury.”

Health assessments upon a person’s arrival to prison provided an opportunity for the person to disclose any relevant health information, she said.

When a prisoner presented with a “known brain injury” the health team would review the services that were being accessed before the person went to prison.

“If the person was being treated for a current brain injury, the aim is to ensure continuity of care and continued access to services while in prison.”

Whanganui Family Violence Intervention Network co-ordinator Lorraine Sheenagh said brain injuries sustained during childhood or adolescence could be at the hands of family members, peers or gang affiliations.

These injuries, often caused by violence during their formative years, had gone undiagnosed, she said.

“The tāne themselves often fail to see the connection between the violence they’ve endured and the potential damage to their brains.

“No one has ever asked them about it and the correlation remains unexplored.”

Prison staff knew and understood the people they were working with and Corrections worked with staff to enable them to recognise when a person may be demonstrating signs of a brain injury, Gardner said.

Sheenagh said undiagnosed brain injuries posed a significant challenge to rehabilitation efforts.

“They hinder participation in programmes aimed at reducing recidivism, increasing the risk of re-offending after release.”

The cognitive and emotional impairments associated with these injuries made it difficult for individuals to reintegrate into society, find employment or maintain stable housing, she said.

Gardner said if a person sustained a head injury while in prison, they were managed by on-site health services and accessed the same health support available in the community.

Brain Injury Trust Whanganui and Restorative City Whanganui Trust provided services to prisoners.

Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.