{"id":566548,"date":"2025-11-13T00:44:23","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T00:44:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/566548\/"},"modified":"2025-11-13T00:44:23","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T00:44:23","slug":"federal-prisons-ill-equipped-for-long-term-mental-health-care-watchdog-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/566548\/","title":{"rendered":"Federal prisons ill-equipped for long-term mental health care: watchdog – National"},"content":{"rendered":"

The federal prison ombudsman says weak policies, insufficient training and a lack of specialized treatment are hindering the Correctional Service of Canada\u2019s<\/a> efforts to deliver mental health<\/a> care.<\/p>\n

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In his latest annual report, correctional investigator Ivan Zinger says it\u2019s \u201cabundantly clear\u201d the prison service is fundamentally ill-equipped to provide long-term mental health care to people experiencing acute psychiatric distress, suicidal thoughts or chronic self-injury.<\/p>\n

In cases involving such serious mental illnesses, transfers to external, secure, community-based psychiatric hospitals are necessary, Zinger says in the report.<\/p>\n

The Correctional Service of Canada routinely transfers individuals requiring complex physical care \u2014 such as chemotherapy or heart surgery \u2014 to external hospitals, Zinger notes.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would be unthinkable to attempt such procedures in-house,\u201d he writes. \u201cYet, when it comes to mental health, CSC continues to operate under the misguided belief that it can provide specialized psychiatric care internally.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Zinger says he plans to retire at the end of January, two years before the end of his term, telling reporters at an Ottawa news conference that his frustrations have been mounting.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf I would have been in a situation where the agency subject to my oversight would have been more responsive, maybe I would have stuck around for another two years,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese agencies typically are much harder to change the culture, and I think they have almost a visceral allergy to external oversight, and it\u2019s exceptionally difficult to make them change their ways. The culture is fairly strong, and there is plenty of evidence that corrections falls under that same sort of situation.\u201d<\/p>\n

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The report draws on the findings from six national investigations that Zinger\u2019s office conducted on mental health care for federally sentenced individuals.<\/p>\n

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The office carried out 425 interviews with people in custody and on community release, made site visits and met with institutional and community staff, community-based stakeholders, Indigenous organizations and provincial correctional authorities.<\/p>\n

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Zinger\u2019s office found weak, vague, outdated or non-existent national policies have led to ineffective, confusing and inconsistent direction and implementation of mental health services.<\/p>\n

Insufficient training for staff on how to work effectively and humanely with individuals with mental health issues has contributed to poor quality of care in corrections, the report says.<\/p>\n

An absence of effective screening and assessment of mental health issues has created \u201ca domino effect\u201d of poor identification and access to services, excluding many who need enhanced care, the report adds.<\/p>\n

Zinger also found a lack of specialized options for programming, treatment or opportunities to acquire skills that would support the successful release of offenders.<\/p>\n

One of the investigations focused on the prison service\u2019s five Regional Treatment Centres.<\/p>\n

Treatment centres present \u201ca unique dynamic\u201d in that they are hybrid facilities \u2014 psychiatric hospitals guided in part by provincial health legislation, operating within a federal penitentiary setting subject to federal legislation, the report says.<\/p>\n

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All of the treatment centres, except for the Regional Psychiatric Centre in the Prairie region, are located within larger penitentiary sites.<\/p>\n

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Zinger found the centres can be best described as intermediate and geriatric care facilities, with limited emergency mental health capacity for acute cases.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey should therefore be reprofiled and recognized as such,\u201d he writes.<\/p>\n

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