Suicides by foreign national prisoners in England and Wales 2007: mental health and cultural issues

Self-inflicted deaths in prisons in England and Wales were at a 10-year low in 2006 but rose in 2007, largely attributed to an unexpected increase in self-inflicted deaths by foreign national (FN) prisoners. All deaths were reviewed in detail using prison and clinical records and interviews with prison staff. This paper reports findings for the deaths of the 20 FN prisoners from non-EU countries. Similarities were found between these deaths and self-inflicted deaths of UK nationals in terms of method, location of death, index offence, and prevalence of mental illness. Additional factors found in the FNs included early anxiety, trauma symptoms in refugees from conflict, language issues, deportation fears, and cultural concepts of shame. These findings are discussed in relation to the entrapment model of suicide and the need for specialised mental health service provision.