prison health news

-better health care while you are in and when you get outIssue 7, Fall 2006

Who We Are...
We are on the outside, but we
were inside before. We’ve been
where you are now and know
what it’s like...and survived it. We
are ex-offenders talking about
health issues and trying to bring
about a positive change for all
people who are in prison now or
ever have been in the past. This
newsletter is about all of us.
We will be talking about health
issues. For example, what is good
nutrition? Where can you get
services and information on the
outside? We want to take your
health questions seriously and
break down complicated health
information so that it is understandable.
We’re also here to help you
learn how to get better health
care within your facility and how
to get answers to your health
questions. Don’t get frustrated.
Be persistent. In prison, it’s often
hard to get what you want, but
with health information, it
doesn’t have to be impossible.
Join us in our fight for our right
to health care and health
information.
Read on...
From,
John, Waheedah, Jeanette,
Shake , & Sam

Freedom, by Juan Balderama, Books Through Bars,Contexts Collection

In this Issue:
Who We Are......................................1
Write An Article!..............................2
Staying Healthy When You’re In &
When you Get Out .....................2-3
Standing in line for Meds: What
you Need to Know.......................4-5
Submit Your Art!............................5
Succeeding in the Face of Struggle...... 6
Poems from the Inside.................6-7
Advocacy and Support
Resources for People in Prison.......8
Subscribe!.........................................8
page 1

Healthy
write an article! Staying
by John Bell, ex-offender,

We have gotten lots of requests
for articles already, and we know
that everyone who reads this
newsletter will have questions or
his or her own story to tell.

Staying healthy is extremely impor-

tant, but it can be hard to do if you are
incarcerated or have been recently
released. If you are struggling with
addiction, finding housing, accessing
If you have advice for other
food, clothing, or other services, manprisoners dealing with health
aging your health can be difficult.
issues, write to us. We will
feature you in “Words to Live By.”
There are some ways for you to stay
healthy while you are inside and to
If you have a question, write to
ensure that you can be healthy when
us. We will write you back and
you get out. We have come up with
may publish an article on your
some tips for how to fight for treatquestion in Prison Health News.
ment and care when you're inside, and
If you want to write an article
how to continue meeting your medical
on something you think is
needs if you get released.
important for prisoners’ health,
While Inside
send it and we will consider
publishing it in Prison Health News. Get Educated: Visit the prison library
You can also write us first to
to get a hold of basic health informadiscuss ideas for articles.
tion. When you are gettting information from books, it is really important
If you want your name kept
confidential, you can sign your article to pay attention to the publication
with your first name or “anonymous.” date. Medical information changes, so
try and read the most recent information available.
In coming issues, we will cover:
For more specific health questions
* Nutrition
like HIV or Hep C, get on mailing
* Exercise
lists for health information. For these
* Getting Support While You Are
topics, paying attention to publication
Incarcerated
date is extra important - HIV informa* How to Advocate for Yourself
tion is constantly being updated as
* HIV Treatments
new research happens. Try to stick to
* Hepatitis C Treatments
* Treatment Strategies for HIV and things that are no older than five or
Hepatitis C Co-infection
six years.
* Depression
The library and health newsletters
* Getting Out
are some of the best resources you
* Staying Clean When You Get Out
have access to when you're locked up.
* Housing
Confused by some of the things
* Welfare, food stamps, and
you’re reading? Write down your
medical assistance
questions - mail them to us at Prison
...and much more!
page 2

When
You’re In & When You Get Out
and Hannah Zellman
Health News, or other prisoner publications. You can also bring your
questions with you when you see the
doctor or nurse. However you get it,
get information! You are the best
advocate for yourself when you are
armed with knowledge.
Work the System: You have the
right to care and treatment when
locked up. First, it's important to
remember that people are more likely to help you if you are polite. This
applies accross the board - from the
guards to the medical staff. It also
helps to get to know your CO's and
make sure that they are on your side
- they can be allies when you need
them.
However, we know that getting
your needs met isn't always as easy
as being polite If you feel like you
are being denied treatment or mistreated, find out the protocol for
filing grievances and follow it.
In addition to filing grievances, if
you have friends or family on the
outside, keep them informed. It can
also be really helpful to have a case
manager, social worker, or doctor on
the outside who is willing to advocate for you.Whoever it is, use your
supports on the outside to help you
get access to the care and treatment
you have a right to.
Preparing for Release:
Release can be a hectic time. You
should do everything you can while
you’re locked up to make sure that
your reentry is smooth. Here are

some tips:
Create your own medical
records Keep track of your care
and treatment on the inside,
because it won't always get forwarded on to your doc in the
community. Ask for copies of
your records, or keep track by
writing down any meds you are
prescribed or care you recieve.
Hook up with services on the
outside Ask around and find out
about HIV/AIDS agencies in
your area. Write to us or other
prisoner mailing lists and we
will help you find what you are
looking for! One of the most
important services to get linked
up to is medical care.
HIV clinics can be a gateway
to other services Once you are
hooked up to medical care, the
folks at the doctor's office can
link you up to other services.
Services and benefits for folks
living with HIV/AIDS are interconnected. In many places medical and social services operate
like a web. The important thing
to know is that there are services
out there that can help you transition back into your community.
The doctor's office can be a great
connection to case management,
housing, food, addiction, or
other supportive services for
folks living with HIV.™
Caged, By William DuBeck, Books Through Bars,
Contexts Collection

page 3

Standing in Line for Meds: What You

by Karen Goldstein, MD
Here are some things you may want
to know about HIV medication. As you
may have heard, the treatment of HIV
has gotten much better in recent years.
There are many more medications
available. With anti-HIV medications
and care from a good medical provider,
people who are HIV positive are living
longer and healthier lives
However, not everyone with HIV
needs to take medication immediately.
HIV makes people sick by damaging
their immune system (the part of the
body that fights disease and infection).
Some people may be HIV positive, but
not need to take medication because
their immune system is still working
well early on.

not you should start meds.
Why is it so important to take your
medications regularly? If you take
your medications some of the time but
not others--missing pills here or there-the virus will be more likely to become
resistant. When the virus becomes
resistant, that means that certain medications will not work as well anymore.
If the virus becomes resistant to enough
different medications, it can be very
hard to treat. A resistant virus is a dangerous virus

This also means that you should
never stop taking one of your HIV
medications and continue the others
UNLESS instructed by your doctor.
Taking some medications and not othWhen you should start medications
ers can also lead to resistance. Your
depends on a number of things, includ- best defense against developing a
ing your CD4 count (a measure of a
resistant virus (i.e. difficult to treat) is
type of cell in your immune system),
by taking your medications on time, at
your viral load (how much virus you
the same time, everyday and never
have in your body) and other aspects of missing your medications for any reayour health. You should discuss with
son.
your doctor when you should start
medication for HIV
Why so many medications? It is
important to take multiple medications
When you start taking medications, it at the same time, because when taken
is important that you take them exactly in combination, HIV drugs work like a
as prescribed by your doctor. This
team fighting together against the HIV
means taking them at the same time
in your body.
every day (within a few hours).
Fighting the virus from several directions means that it will be harder for
You need to be ready to make a com- HIV to make you sick. Taking multiple
mitment to taking your HIV medicamedications also reduces the chance
tions consistently before starting them. that your virus will become resistant.
This is something that is important to
Sometimes the medications come in a
discuss with your doctor
combination pill (multiple medications
page 4 when deciding whether or
in one pill).Your doctor and you can

Need to Know

submit your art!

if you have artwork that you
would like to see featured in an
find the best combination for you
upcoming issue of Prison Health
based on your virus and your other
health conditions. Not all medications News, send it to us and we’ll
consider publishing it!
work the same for everyone.
How can I remember to take medication every day? Some people with
HIV use different methods of remembering to take their medications on
time every day. Some people develop
a daily routine and time their medications accordingly. For example, some
people take their meds at the beginning of their favorite TV program.
Other folks ask a friend they can trust
to remind them. It is important that
you choose whatever method works
best for you.

Prison Health News
c/o Philadelphia FIGHT
1233 Locust St, 5th Floor
Philadelphia PA 19107

What if I don't have possession of
my medications? If you are in a situation where someone else is giving you
medications on a dose-by-dose basis,
it is still important to be committed to
your HIV medications. Try to make
sure you are getting all the medications you are supposed to get every
day. If you think you are not getting
the medication as prescribed, you
should put in a sick call to talk to
your doctor or nurse IMMEDIATELY!
Your HIV medication will only work
if you actually take it! HIV has
become a much more treatable disease
and unlike 15 years ago, you can live
a normal and healthy life with HIV.
HOWEVER, you must take your
medications consistently to stay
healthy.™

Untitled, By William Gilpin, Books
Through Bars, Contexts Collection

page 5

Succeeding In The Face of Struggle
-Jeanette Moody, ex-offender

Hello, my name is Jeanette Moody,
and I am a 44-year-old black female
and a grateful recovering addict living
with AIDS.

feelings of feeling dirty, and not
worthy of life itself.

Today I'm now living a clean and
sober life with 10 years clean, a viral
I need to say I'm a mother of two won- load that's undetectable, and a CD4
derful sons and a grandson who means count of 280. Every day is a blessing.
the world to me. For so many years
I'm now in the position to help others
my life has been so chaotic,
with addiction and help them learn to
confusing, and unmanageable to the
live with HIV/AIDS.
point that living wasn't even an option
for me.
Through all my struggles I need to say
my strength came from helping others,
What happened is that I was raped by and my coping skills are at a point
six guys in 1991 and then I was told in now where it allows me to carry on
1992 that I was HIV positive. After
and trust in a power higher than
that my life seemed over, and then I
myself, and to know that no matter
started to use drugs to medicate my
what, I'm a survivor.™
Escape, by W. Cole, Books Through Bars Contexts Collection

poems
from the inside
Going Down -By Tom Gallagher, prisoner
I was brought up
I fired up
I got fucked up
I drank up
I puked up
I shot up
I smoked up
I got caught up
I stuck someone up
I got set up
The cops creeped up
page 6

I got beat up
I got locked up
I got sent up
I gave up
I got fed up
I woke up
I wised up
I looked up
I gave it up…
Now things are looking up

poems from the inside
A Love of Learning

~ By Bobby Bostic, prisoner
I love to learn
The engines of my mind continue to
churn
Everyday I learn something new
Knowledge and wisdom I pursue
When I was a child my mother said
that I loved to learn new things
Everything that I came across I was
curious to know what it means
There is so much to learn in this world
that I stay busy
Trying to find the answer to all of
these questions with my own integrity
Learning is something that I love to do
That's why when it comes to books I
am always on cue
I do not consider myself as a nerdy
type of person
I just have a love of learning for
certain
Discovering new things makes me feel
good
That's why I study like a lifetime
student should
Because a person can never learn too
much
I hope to learn every language from
Arabic to Dutch
Lessons are to be learned in everything that we experience and see
I am still learning new things about
me
I keep on studying as the world is
turning
Inside of me is this great love of
learning
poem from Bobby’s book of poems
titled "Knowledge In A Poem'

information

resources for
people in prison
If you need information while you are
locked up, contact:
Project Inform
Outreach and Education Department
205 13th Street, Suite 2001
San Francisco, CA 94103-2461
information & newsletters on HIV
*free to prisoners
Fortune News
Subscriptions
c/o The Fortune Society
53 West 23rd Street
New York, NY 10010
newsletter on criminal justice issues
*free to prisoners
Prison Legal News
2400 NW 80th St. #148
Seattle,WA 98117
newsletter on prisoner rights&court rulings
*sample issue $1. unused stamps OK.
Southern Poverty Law Center
PO Box 548
Montgomery, AL 36101
Publish “Protecting Your Health and Safety:
A Litigation Guide for Inmates”
*$10 for inmates.
The Books 4 Prisoners Crew
P.O. Box 19065
Cincinnati, OH 45219
Publishes “Inside Out” a prisoner resource
guide with over 600 listings for prisoner
support groups and a review of services
provided by each one.
*$6 for free world folk. Prisoners who
would like a copy should send one of the
following--$0.60 in unused stamps, a
$0.60 prisoner money order made out
to “Books For Prisoners,” or 2 clean
embossed envelopes.
As always, if you have specific questions
or are looking for information, write us!
Prison Health News c/o Philadelphia FIGHT
1233 Locust St 5th Floor
Philadelphia PA 19107
page 7

advocacy and support
resources for people in prison
If you need help while you are locked up, or when you get out,
contact:
In Philadelphia, PA
Philadelphia FIGHT
1233 Locust Street, 5th Floor
Philadelphia PA 19107
(215) 985-4448--no collect calls
Contact: Hannah Zellman

In Miami, FL
Care Resource, Miami
3510 Biscayne Blvd, Suite 300
Miami, FL 33137
(305) 576-1234--no collect calls
Contact: Intake Counselor

In New York City, NY
Women Prison Association
& Home Inc.
175 Remsen Street, 9th Floor
Brooklyn, NY 11201
(718) 797-0300--for collect calls from
inside New York Jails/Prisons
(718) 637-6818--no collect calls
Contact: Leah Bundy

In San Francisco, CA
Continuum Springboard
225 Golden Gate Avenue
San Francisco, CA 94102
(415) 823-0414--no collect calls
(415) 823-0415--no collect calls
Contact: Helen Lin or Charlie Wilson

In New Brunswick, NJ
Project Connect
PO Box 824
New Brunswick, NJ 08901
999-999-9999--for free calls from
inside New Jersey State Prisons
1-800-433-0254--toll free in NJ
Contact: Nadia Matar

In Houston,TX
Legacy Community Health Services, Inc.
215 Westheimer
Houston,TX 77006
(713) 830-3002--no collect calls
Contact: Jay Slemmer, RN
Every organization on this list provides case
management, medical care and support services
for people when they get out of prison. Most of
these organizations specialize in HIV care. Every
organization distributes Prison Health News.

If you need resources in a city not listed here, write to us!
We will help you track down answers to your specific questions.
Write to us if you know a great organization that is missing from this list.

prison
health
news
page 8

Edited By:
Hannah Zellman
John S. James
Adam Feldman
John Bell
Waheedah Shabazz-el
Jeanette Moody
Clayton“Shake” Clark
Sam Morales

subscribe!

If you would like to have Prison Health
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Prison Health News
c/o Philadelphia FIGHT
1233 Locust Street,
5th Floor
We are grateful for
financial support from Philadelphia PA 19107
Boehringer Ingelheim

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