Nursing impact at Kosovo prisons health services

Introduction Nurses play a crucial role in providing healthcare services in prisons and psychiatric hospitals in Kosovo. In Kosovo, there are ten prison facilities with a capacity of 2500 inmates. At those facilities there are ten Prison Health Units with six Medical Clinics and three medical stationeries. At every PHU, basic healthcare services are offered round-the-clock. Purpose The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of nurses in providing healthcare services in prisons and psychiatric hospitals in Kosovo. The study aims to assess the workload and responsibilities of nurses and the quality of healthcare services they provide. Additionally, the study analyzes the management of health services in these institutions. Methods This study is based on statistical data from the Prison Health Service in Kosovo from 2013 to 2022. The study calculated statistical coefficients related to the number of nurses and healthcare staff per 1,000 prisoners. Results The study found that there were 10.09 nurses per 1,000 inmates in the 10 prison facilities in Kosovo, and the total number of medical staff per 1,000 inmates was 15.49. The ratio of physicians per 1,000 inmates was 3.05, indicating a relatively low number of physicians compared to nurses. The study also found a higher ratio of nursing staff to inmates, indicating more individualized attention and care. Conclusions The study concludes that nurses play a vital role in providing healthcare services in prisons and psychiatric hospitals in Kosovo. The study recommends hiring more physicians to improve the quality of healthcare services in prisons.