Psychiatric care at Portlaoise prison described as 'unacceptable'
There was a total absence of any HSE in-reach psychiatric nursing input to Portlaoise Prison
Portlaoise prison has come under criticism for its psychiatric care following a report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons (OIP) which has highlighted that mental health care needs are not being met.
An inspection was carried out in February and March last year by a team including two international experts in forensic psychiatry.
The team said there was a total absence of any HSE in-reach psychiatric nursing input to Portlaoise Prison, a situation that has persisted for the last five years.
"This, for the highest security prison in the State, with 217 high-risk serious prisoners, some with mental disorders (a usual caseload of 20–35), is unacceptable," the reported stated.
"With only 0.2 WTE consultant psychiatrist, psychiatric input to the prison, the situation was the most deficient of any of the prisons visited, with staff there describing how mental health assessment and support of prisoners, psychotropic medication response monitoring and psychiatric discharge planning were seriously hampered.
"Indeed, during the four to six weeks each year when the psychiatrist was on annual leave, there was no formal psychiatric input to the prison at all. As a senior IPS nurse there said, “someone really needs to come and manage the caseload."
The facility in Laois had just one GP for its 217 prisoners and eight nurses.
The provision of care was assessed in seven of the 13 prisons in the State.
Low staffing numbers, inadequate environmental conditions, deficiencies in treatment within prison, and a gross lack of system-wide clinical care pathways are four key issues identified in the report.