ArticleThe British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners2026
Critical illness in prisons: a multi-methods analysis of reported healthcare safety incidents in England.
Article in The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
What it found
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The trial behind it
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Who cites it
2 citing papers in PubMed.
- The incidence of avoidable healthcare-associated harm in prisons in England: a retrospective case note review.BMJ quality & safety · 2026Observational
- Equitable palliative care in prisons: integrating advanced care planning.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundPrisoners have disproportionately poorer health and complex needs compared with the general population. Prisons should provide care that is equivalent to community care to achieve equitable health outcomes, which includes managing physical deterioration.
aimTo characterise reported patient safety incidents involving critically unwell prisoners and identify opportunities to improve prison healthcare systems. DESIGN AND
settingSecondary multi-methods analysis of incident reports submitted from English prisons to the National Reporting and Learning System (NRLS) between 2018 and 2019.
methodThe patient safety incidents had been characterised in previous research focusing on patient safety in prisons, describing incident types, contributory factors, and outcomes. Purposive sampling of these coded data was carried out using search terms to identify healthcare-associated harm, or near misses, related to critical illness (ill health with risk of death if urgent care is not provided). Included reports were sequentially analysed by descriptive and framework analysis.
resultsOf 4112 reports submitted to the NRLS within 12 months, 983 (23.9%) were identified by the search terms and screened, and 94 (9.6%) met the inclusion criteria for analysis, containing 189 safety incidents. The most common patient outcomes within the reports included delayed assessment or treatments (
conclusionSystem-wide interventions are needed to improve the safety of care delivered to critically ill prisoners, including improved continuity of care, enhanced emergency response training, reviews of emergency protocols surrounding clinical assessments, recognition of critical illness, escalation plans, and communication with wider teams.
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