Special Issue on Transgender Health and Corrections

Incarceration is a significant public health issue that disproportionately affects transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people. TGD individuals experience higher incarceration rates and cyclical incarceration is common. They also often present to correctional settings with mental health and comorbid substance use disorders, infectious diseases, and other medical conditions, resulting in a high and complex disease burden. Given that correctional systems operate under a traditional cisgender-centric gender/sex binary structure, they must implement a range of policy and operational changes to ensure the safety, security, and health care of incarcerated TGD people. Challenges in caring for TGD people in correctional settings and potential means of addressing them have not been well explored in the literature, and the lack of national, corrections-based practice guidelines and best practices leaves correctional administrators and health care providers with limited guidance for optimizing the care and safety of TGD people.

The Journal of Correctional Health Care and Transgender Health are collaborating to produce a Special Issue on Transgender Health and Corrections. The Special Issue will highlight the complex interactions of incarceration, physical and mental health, and care for TGD individuals, as well as myriad challenges in the realms of both health services and custody. We welcome the submission of manuscripts exploring research, policies, practices, and ethical issues related to the health and health care of TGD individuals in jails and prisons.

Topics for Consideration

Epidemiology 

• Frequency of detainment, incarceration, and recidivism 
• Prevalence of medical and mental health conditions of TGD people in criminal justice settings (e.g., HIV, hepatitis C, TB, maladaptive personality traits and personality disorders, substance use disorders, depression) 
• Frequency, experiences, and impact of victimization and trauma prior to and during confinement
• Frequency and experiences of suicidal ideation and self-harm 

Clinical Care

• Distinction between transgender identity and gender dysphoria (as defined by the DSM-5) in community and correctional settings and the need for diagnostic sensitivity
• Guidelines, protocols, and practices for providing patient education and health care to TGD people (e.g., hormone therapy, surgery)
• Best practices and guidelines for responding to patient requests for gender-affirming surgery and other surgeries
• Interventions that advance the clinical skills and cultural competencies of correctional health care providers caring for TGD people

Custodial Care and Safety

• Best practices or evidence-based practices for custodial care and safety of TGD people
• Proven training strategies that promote respectful attitudes and cultural competencies of correctional staff working with TGD people
• Awareness, education, and violence prevention
• Effect of legal challenges on the care and custody of TGD people

Gender Affirmation

• Guidelines, protocols, and practices for accommodating, affirming, and ensuring the safety of TGD people (e.g., housing, clothing, preferred name and pronoun use, special protection)
• Potential applications of gender affirmation theory to practice in prison and jail settings
• Facilitators of and barriers to implementation of gender-affirming correctional and medical guidelines, protocols, and practices

Community Reentry

• Facilitators and barriers to successful community reentry for TGD people
• Innovative strategies for improving community reentry for TGD people

Perspectives

• First-person accounts from TGD individuals of their experiences with the criminal justice system
• Field/case reports from correctional health care providers or system administrators regarding medical management of TGD individuals
• Field/case reports from correctional officials or administrators regarding custody and care of TGD individuals

Manuscript Submission
Prepare manuscripts using the Manuscript Submission Guidelines for the Journal of Correctional Health Care. Submit your manuscript using the ScholarOne system by October 30, 2021. Please direct any questions here.