Prison Within Prison Dementia Rising in Incarcerated

This is something you rarely think about - aging prisoners. And how they are like the rest of society when it comes to aging. That is why this New York Times article in fascinating. It takes a look into a world we seldom pay attention to ourselves.

According to the Times, "Dementia in prison is an underreported but fast-growing phenomenon, one that many prisons are desperately unprepared to handle. It is an unforeseen consequence of get-tough-on-crime policies -- long sentences that have created a large population of aging prisoners. About 10 percent of the 1.6 million inmates in America's prisons are serving life sentences; another 11 percent are serving over 20 years.

Experts say that prisoners appear more prone to dementia than the general population because they often have more risk factors: limited education, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, depression, substance abuse, even head injuries from fights and other violence. And that means they are more prone to falling and other mishaps, resulting in hospitalization and rehospitalizations.

Prisons are unprepared. Some are using other inmates to care for the dementia patients. That is what the bulk of the article covered.

Others would like to transfer inmates to nursing homes. I'd like to see how that would go over. New York State has built their own skilled nursing units.

So this brings up an interesting topic - inmates as a business opportunity. I am not trying to be harsh but the harsh reality is that these elders need help. Do they deserve help? Not for me to say. Could their unchecked dementia and Alzheimer's be exacerbated and affect us? Certainly since we are paying for their care.

So if taking care of this population becomes more of a priority, who better to do it than the industry that has the expertise in it.

I am not sure if New York State partnered with a skilled provider or consulted with them to build a unit but it would seem that this type of expertise is needed.

It is not a new phenomenon. A good friend of mine runs lab services for prisoners based in a hospital nearby. So clearly hospitals have seen business opportunity in prison populations.

The moral and ethical dilemma is clear and everyone will have their own take. But there is no doubt that the business opportunity is growing.

Alzheimer's currently affects 5.4 million Americans, a number expected to double by 2040. Experts believe that Alzheimer's disease in prisons could grow two or three times as fast.

What do you think?

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@Bill Fritsch,Getty Images