Nearly two-thirds of NT prisoners have mental illness, no support
Almost two-thirds of NT prisoners have mental illness but the territory has no specialist support.
The Northern Territory has the highest prison rate in Australia. A new study in Australasian Psychiatry examined medical records of all 310 inmates across Darwin and Alice Springs.
Almost two-thirds have a mental illness diagnosis. The general population rate is 43 per cent.
Substance use disorder was the most common illness. It affected almost 70 per cent of female prisoners.
Indigenous people made up 90.6 per cent of the prison cohort, though only 26 per cent of the territory's population. The NT has no secure mental health facility or specialist services to treat these inmates.
Staff at both centres say the need for support is urgent and life-changing work.
- 310
- Prisoners studied
- Almost two-thirds
- With mental illness diagnosis
- Almost 70 per cent
- Female prisoners with substance use
- 90.6 per cent
- Indigenous people in prison cohort
Why it mattersUntreated mental illness in prisons drives re-offending and costs lives. The NT is treating a health crisis as a justice problem.
AustraliaAustralians in the NT's prison system are cycling through without mental health care; this affects Indigenous communities in particular and pressures emergency services across the territory.
✓ Claims checked against the source and corrected before publish. checked 9 d ago
