Table 1.

Scientific aims, interlinked health and methodological perspectives, and work packages (WPs) for the periods prior to, during, and after imprisonment.

Time period and aim		Health perspective	Methodological perspective	WPa
Prior to imprisonment
	Investigate the prevalence of SUDb among the prison population before incarceration in Scandinavia	Determine the burden of SUD-related problems and selection of persons with SUD who are in prison	Does registry data capture the prevalence of SUD across the Scandinavian countries?	I
	Investigate the prevalence of mental and physical health problems before incarceration among the prison population	Determine the burden of mental and physical health problems and selection of persons with such problems who are in prison	Does registry data capture the prevalence of mental and physical health problems across the Scandinavian countries?	I
During imprisonment
	Test a risk assessment tool based on OxRecc for identification of persons with SUD in need of treatment interventions	Identify persons in need of treatment based on routinely collected data	Improving risk assessment by testing and externally validating the OxRec instrument in the Nordic countries	II
	Investigate and compare the availability of treatment interventions during incarceration for SUD and non-SUD populations	Determine if adequate treatment is offered in line with health policies and whether the availability of treatment for persons with SUD (first aim) differs from persons without SUD	Is registry data a valid source when estimating treatment availability in prison?	I
	Investigate the nature, norms, mechanisms, and process of SUD treatment in Scandinavian prisons	Determine how SUD treatment is implemented and integrated into the prison context	How can qualitative analysis complement and support register data on health in prison research?	III
Postimprisonment
	Investigate and compare postrelease outcomes	Determine effects of in-prison treatment on postrelease outcomes regarding health, social welfare, and recidivism	How can variables from different countries be aligned to fully compare outcomes?	I
	Investigate postrelease narratives among former prisoners	Describe challenges and opportunities for persons released from prison as perceived by participants in WayBack (a nonprofit foundation that helps prisoners return to society)	How can qualitative prison research guide, improve, and support implementation of health interventions in the postrelease context?	III
	Test a risk assessment tool based on OxRec for identification of persons with a need for additional follow-up postrelease	Identify persons with a high risk of substance use postrelease to prevent relapse to substance use, crime, overdose, and other high-risk events	Improving risk assessment by testing and externally validating the OxRec instrument in the Nordic countries	II

^aWP I is related to epidemiology, WP II is related to risk assessment, and WP III is related to qualitative methods.

^bSUD: substance use disorder.

^cOxRec: Oxford Risk of Recidivism Tool.