Ideas from Complex Systems Theory: Peer-led Community Preventive Health for a WHO (2007) ‘Whole Prison’ Approach to Health

Abstract

This article is presented following fourteen years of experience with an innovative approach to preventive health in all Irish Prisons. During this period, University-led and internal evaluations have demonstrated increased engagement with prison populations by trained inmate peer educators, linked to formal prison health,
psychology and addiction service professionals [1-3]. Peer-led interventions, where individuals with similar lifeexperiences guide and support one another, have shown promise across various contexts, including substance abuse recovery, mental health, and criminal justice [4]. They have also influenced violence prevention, creating safer prisons for both inmates and staff, reported in earlier evaluations [2,15, 56, 57].