PRACTICAL RECOMMENDATIONS It should be pointed out to the trainees that the information they receive on this training programme is intended to be taken back to the workplace and implemented. The best way of ensuring that this will happen is to make certain that the trainees understand the principles involved and the reasoning behind them. This is particularly true in the case of medical matters. TOPICS FOR DISCUSSION A list of topics is provided in the Manual. Methodology: The trainees should be divided into small groups for discussion. These are two interesting topics which affect all prison workers. In order to maximize participation, each group should be given one topic to discuss and be asked to prepare to report back to the full group. At this session, comments from the floor should be encouraged. Points to be highlighted/suggested areas for discussion: 39. – Prison staff often have to deal with people everyone else has given up on; they are also often criticized if they appear to fail; 39. – A purely rational approach is not always appropriate because the prisoner may be impaired by persistent addictive substance abuse; 39. – Prison staff might wonder if prison is the right place for such people; they are likely to feel particularly frustrated if they see the same people coming back to prison again and again; 39. – What agencies exist in the community to deal with addicts? Could they be involved as part of a programme after release?; 39. – How much training do non-specialist prison staff need on the nature of the HIV virus, how it is transmitted and what precautions need to be taken? Why do they need this training?; 39. – If the training is comprehensive, the remaining questions are easy to answer; 39. – The HIV virus cannot be transmitted through ordinary day-to-day contact, so HIV-positive prisoners who are not actually ill can be located normally; 39. – The important point is that prison staff will not be aware of the health status of all prisoners; 39. – These matters are confidential between the prisoner and the doctor. The only safe way to proceed is to assume that everyone may have the infection and to apply the highest possible standards of hygiene in all aspects of prison life; 39. – This advice is just as valid outside prison. 70