I care for CRIMINALS

Rubbing his lower back and complaining of pain, my patient told me how the past two years of sleeping on a hard, thin mattress had taken its toll. From his notes, I knew he had a history of self-harming but, when he pulled up his sweatshirt so I could examine him, I was struck by what I saw.

Old scars, caused by cigarette burns, covered his back, and I knew it was unlikely he would have been able to do it himself. He was just 18, and had clearly been through so much, like all of my patients, but he was also serving time in jail. For me, being a doctor isn’t simply