THE RIGHT TO HEALTH IN PRISON:
RESULTS OF A NATIONWIDE SURVEY AND REPORT
CHAPTER 3:
FINDINGS AND SURVEY ANALYSIS
Introduction
3.1
This Chapter contains data on the health status of Malaysia’s prisoners,
prison staff and medical practitioners, including mental health,
communicable diseases and aspects of women’s health. The information,
where possible, is broken down by gender and prisoner status.
3.2
All survey respondents were selected by the prisons department, citing
security. Distribution of the survey questionnaires were conducted in 2
stages: prison staff and medical practitioners (stage 1); prisoners (stage 2).
The respondents self-answered the questionnaires after a briefing by the
Commission. All answers were based on the individual understanding of
their health conditions.
Survey Findings
3.3
Involving the participation of 6,420 randomly selected individuals (5,482
prisoners, 886 prison staff, and 52 prison medical staff) from 18 prisons
in the country, the survey was conducted to assess the health status of the
prison population, and the overall understanding of the human right to
health. The finding and analysis are divided in 3 sections:
a.Prisoners (Male and Female)
i. Part I : Demographic Information
ii. Part II : Quantitative Research and Analysis
iii. Part III : Qualitative Research and Analysis
31