Explore innovative, collaborative practice, policy and research to gain further understanding of and expertise in working across health and justice contexts.
Course overview
This course provides professional development which responds to strategic priorities in justice and health practice and policy. It has been developed in recognition of contemporary approaches between criminal justice and health sectors, to conceptualise and respond to complex societal issues. You will explore innovative, collaborative practice, policy and research to gain further understanding of and expertise in working across health and justice contexts.
Working with a range of people from different professions, the course has an overarching focus on partnerships. Innovative practice and considering differing viewpoints will bring together your interprofessional learning community. Together, you and your cohort will take part in this unique opportunity to evaluate the intersection of services through legislation, health and social policy, practice and strategic responses.
The course offers an opportunity to learn flexibly online at your own pace. It concludes with a 2-day residential seminar. Working in inter-professional groups, you will prepare and present a collaborative case study of innovation and best practice on a key health and justice challenge. This practical resource can be shared with your organisation to inform positive change.
Course details
Public Service Reform in Scotland is founded on the benefits of working collaboratively and in partnership, across organisational boundaries. Police Scotland and Public Health Scotland have developed new formalised collaborations to address public health and wellbeing in communities. As such, the proposed course seeks to provide an opportunity for learning and practice sharing for professionals located at the intersection between justice and health agencies. Throughout the course, you will explore complex social issues that influence both health and criminal justice systems, such as social and economic inequalities; adverse childhood experiences; vulnerability to violence, especially gender-based violence in domestic settings; mental health crises; alcohol and other drug use and related harms such as HIV infection; dementia, and commercial sex work and exploitation. You will consider the multidimensional character of such issues, comparing public health and criminal justice theory and practice perspectives. The module seeks to draw out synergies and tensions in the disciplinary perspectives of health and criminology, enhancing your theoretical knowledge and critical evaluation skills. You will reflect critically on shared and different occupational cultures and systems which can act as facilitators or barriers to engagement with services.
Case Study
Intersect between public health and criminal justice“I’m not going to leave someone to die”: A policing response to Scotland’s drugs death crisis.
Scotland has one of the highest rates of drug-related deaths (DRDs) per capita in Europe, the majority of which involve opioids. Naloxone is a medication used to reverse opioid-related overdoses and is routinely used in healthcare settings, by emergency paramedic responders, and distributed to people deemed to be at high risk in communities. However, police officers are more frequently first responders on scene to people who overdose. Although police officers are well-placed to provide emergency first aid, there was no precedent for the use of Naloxone by Police officers in the UK, A test of change was conducted by Police Scotland which was Scottish Centre for Policing and Public Health (SCPPH), which has its academic home at 麻豆社区.
What we found
• Naloxone provides an effective first-aid tool which allows police to carry out their duty to ‘preserve life’.
• Police officers are in a good position to work in partnership with other health and social care services to facilitate support following a near fatal overdose.
• Many police officers care about the communities they work in and want to have a positive impact on the lives of vulnerable people who use drugs.
• There was some initial opposition to the carriage of naloxone by the Police Federation, citing ‘mission creep’ to a medical mater, and lack of understanding of the safety and legal repercussions of the use of naloxone. However, this position has since changed.
What has changed?
The test of change underpinned the official 2022 roll-out of Naloxone across Scotland and 16,600 police officers now carry Naloxone as part of their standard kit. Scotland isthe only country where every officer is trained and equipped at the point of recruitment. To date (November 2024) there have been over 585 incidents where police officers administered Naloxone to save a person experiencing overdose, and Police Scotland now plays a significant role in reducing the annual DRDs in Scotland.
How you will be taught
The course will involve a live online introduction, followed by 5 weeks of online learning, and will conclude with a 2-day residential seminar.
How you will be assessed
You will prepare and present a reflective inter-professional case study of a key issue in public health and criminal justice. Working in inter-professional groups comprised of healthcare and criminal justice practitioners, you will write up a reflective case study which outlines the issue and provides an overview of relevant theory, research, policy and practice; discusses the challenges in this context and barriers to inter-professional learning; and identifies good practice and suggests reforms for policy and new directions for collaboration in health and justice as we respond to this issue.
Entry requirements
The course is aimed at practitioners working at the interface of health and justice across Scotland in organisations such as (but not limited to) NHS, Police Scotland, Scottish Prison Service, Justice Voluntary Sector. Current employment in an organisation relevant to criminal justice and public health, e.g. NHS, Police Scotland, Scottish Prison Service, justice voluntary sector organisations. There are no academic entry requirements, entry will be determined based on the applicant's prior professional experience.
Dates
19th May - 5th July 2025
How to apply
Fee: £630
Self-funding students paying by credit card, please apply .
Invoicing: If you need your organisation to be invoiced to cover the cost of attendance, then please complete this online