New inmates coming into federal penitentiaries may not be able to get their prescription medications for weeks, says the ombudsman who oversees prisons. These may be crucial drugs to treat pain, mental illness or other conditions.
When they arrive, prisoners are not allowed to bring their meds with them. They must instead be assessed by prison doctors who then will issue prescriptions. But there is a shortage of doctors and inmates tend to have to wait 30 days or more to see them.
Government obliged to provide health care
“The Correctional Service of Canada is responsible for the provision of health care for all federally-sentenced offenders,” says Howard Sapers, Correctional Investigator of Canada. “Those inmates become 100 per cent dependent on the Correctional Service of Canada to meet their health needs.”
ListenHealth care a top complaint
Lack of access to, and quality of health care have always been the top complaints made to him, says Sapers. He notes that between 7,000 and 8,000 new inmates are admitted each year and there are not enough doctors to assess them all quickly.
Sometimes medications are changed for security or other reasons. Authorities do not want inmates selling prescription drugs. But new medications don’t always work as well. Sapers says there are other ways to ensure prescription drugs are taken by the right inmate such as turning them into liquid form and watching inmates consume them.
“There are ways to get around some of the security concerns and the Correctional Service of Canada has the responsibility to meet the health needs of offenders. So it must take the initiative to figure out a way to do that to both protect the health of the offender but of course also to protect the security of the institution,” he says.
‘Canadians should be very concerned’
Besides the legal and moral obligation to the inmates, Sapers says there is a public health obligation. “I think Canadians should be very concerned…If inmates are not treated while they’re in custody then they’re bringing their illness and disease back into the community when they are released, and that’s a problem.”
The ombudsman will present his findings and recommendations to the Correctional Service of Canada and to Parliament. Although he has no power to ensure they are adopted, he does work with them and other interested parties to try to obtain remedies for the problems he has investigated.
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