A health crisis? Exploring the effects of privatisation on refugee women’s access to health care services within UK detention centres

Abstract

In the UK, the privatisation of immigration detention centres has existed ever since they were first implemented. Over the years more and more controversy has come to the surface over the treatment of detainees and the conditions which they are subjected to, particularly for female detainees. This study was a desk research that sought to explore the issues which female detainees experience in relation to their health and access to healthcare within private detention centres in the UK. An electronic search was done using PubMed, Scorpus, Mediline and ProQuest for peer reviewed articles as well as grey articles from other relevant sources, published between 2000 until 2021 on female detainees’ treatment and access to healthcare in detention centres in the UK. A total of 108 articles were retrieved for full screening, after which 43 were selected for final review. This study reveals the various issues of neglect and direct violations of detainee’s human rights being experiences in immigration detention. An intersectional feminist framework is used as a lens to analyse the various experiences of female detainees. Furthermore, the parts played by both the private companies running the centres and UK government is scrutinised for their lack of transparency and neglect. Recommendations were made surrounding staffing, screening and monitoring of detainees (particularly with mental health issues), and an improvement of reporting from regulatory bodies to ensure transparency in the future.