Prevalence of mental illness among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland prisons

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the prevalence of mental disorder in a representative sample of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Queensland prisons. DESIGN, SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS: Cross-sectional assessment of mental health using the Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) and clinical interviews, conducted by Indigenous mental health clinicians who undertook specific training for this purpose, with support from forensic psychiatrists when indicated. We assessed adults who self-identified as Indigenous and were incarcerated in six of the nine major correctional centres across Queensland (housing 75% of all Indigenous men and 90% of all Indigenous women in Queensland pris..