Institutionalised Women

The term institutionalisation is used to describe the adverse psychological effects on individuals who have spent long periods living in institutions such as prisons, remand centres, juvenile detention centres, aged care/nursing home facilities, psychiatric units, detoxification/rehabilitation centres, children’s homes and refugee detention centres. WCHM is concerned about the affects of these institutions on women’s health and well-being and is currently looking for project partners to undertake further research in this area. Please feel free to contact the Executive Director on ed@wchm.org.au or phone (02) 62902166 to offer your ideas and suggestions on how WCHM can move forward in this area.

Current WCHM Projects

Women and Prisons: Invisible Bars – The Stories behind the Stats

WCHM, in collaboration with the ACT Women and Prisons Group  (WAP) has recently published a report into the health issues facing women with a lived prison experience. A copy of this report can be found in the Reports and Publications  section of this website. This report makes a number of recommendations for ways that WCHM and WAP can work together with the ACT Community and Government sector to address some of the issues raised in the report.