“It was really poor prior to the pandemic. It got really bad after”: A qualitative study of the impact of COVID-19 on prison healthcare in England

The Covid-19 pandemic has significantly impacted almost all aspects of prison healthcare in the UK. This includes delivery of healthcare by staff, receipt of it by people in prison and the management, planning and commissioning of it by decision makers. These three groups of people were all affected detrimentally but in vastly different ways, with some participants describing a sense of trauma. Health needs that were exacerbated or went unmet during Covid urgently need to be addressed in order to reduce health inequalities. In order for welfare and wellbeing to be maintained, and in some cases repaired, both prisoners and staff need to feel heard and recognised.