Type
Secured ServicesHMP Bedford is a category B reception and resettlement prison for men aged 18 years and over. The prison has been located on its current site since 1801 and is located in the heart of the town which is steeped in history, has a wide range of shops and amenities close by and excellent road and rail connections.
NHFT offer a full range of healthcare services delivered by a professional, multidisciplinary, friendly team.
These include primary healthcare (medical, nursing and pharmacy), primary and secondary mental health, clinical and psychosocial substance misuse, physiotherapy, podiatry and optometry. We have a highly skilled nursing team including non-medical prescribers. The healthcare department also benefits from having an inpatient unit which provides 24 hour nursing care.
The team at HMP Bedford work in collaboration with partner organisations and other providers to improve continuity of care of patients who move from the community into prison and back to the community. We have strong links with police custody to improve incoming information flow and use both an enhanced clinical pathway for patients with problematic substance use and telemedicine appointments with link workers to pave the way for patients to be safely released back into the community.
We are very proud to work collaboratively with our prison colleagues to ensure a multidisciplinary approach is taken in educating, supporting and encouraging patients to make healthy choices. We provide a wide range of health promotion literacy which is translated and adapted to meet language and literacy requirements and we have health promotion boards located on all wings which reflect our health promotion calendar. We hold health promotion days with opportunities to have conversations about self-care - and we even offer herbal teas! We work closely with the kitchen staff to ensure medical dietary needs are met and healthy living promoted
We have developed a unique approach to the complex area of helping patients manage complex pain through a well-developed multi-disciplinary individualised approach led by our GP and physiotherapist with involvement of mental health and substance misuse teams. We find that contact with our pain team can often begin a journey of better health and well-being for the patient, through understanding their pain and the benefits of non-pharmacological interventions introduced alongside prescribed medicines.
HMP Bedford is one of the few prison services to have a RECONNECT service that supports vulnerable people to engage with and access healthcare following release/transfer. This enhanced support is having a significant impact on closing the health inequalities gap and providing positive outcomes for our patients.
Visit our Prison Services overview page for more information on this service and referral details.