Press release
Ministers Harris and Donnelly publish report on the Health Needs Assessment for the Irish Prison Service
From Department of Justice; Department of Health
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The Minister for Justice Simon Harris and the Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly have today published the report on the Health Needs Assessment (HNA) for the Irish Prison Service.
This is the first comprehensive health assessment undertaken for the Irish Prison Service. Work commenced in November 2019 by independent consultants, Crowe Ireland. Their report was delivered to a Steering Group, which included senior officials from the Departments of Justice and Health, and the Irish Prison Service (IPS), in early 2022.
Following deliberations between the IPS and both departments over its recommendations during 2022, the report is now concluded and was presented to both the Minister for Justice and Minister for Health in February 2023 for approval and publication.
The main recommendation of the report is that responsibility for prison healthcare services should remain with the IPS. It also recommends the development of formal pathways between the IPS and the wider health system, including the Department of Health and HSE, to enable the culture and recognition of the role of prisons within the health system and to address professional and service isolation.
Speaking on the publication of the report today, Minister Harris said:
“This is a really valuable report setting out 60 recommendations for the best development of healthcare services in the Irish Prison Service. The wide-ranging recommendations address general healthcare provision, women’s healthcare, mental health services, addiction and substance misuse services. A number of recommendations relate to the governance and resourcing of healthcare provision in the Prison Service.
"The Report also includes a draft implementation plan which has been developed to take forward the majority of recommendations. The Irish Prison Service will lead on implementation, with much of the work taking place over the next 3 years.
“We are not starting from scratch. This will complement the High Level Task Force (HLTF) on the interaction of persons with mental health and addiction challenges in the Justice Sector which was published in September 2022, while we have rolled out gynaecological services to females in Limerick Prison.
“The aim here is to ensure the right services and treatments are available to support people in custody and support their rehabilitation away from lives of crime.”
Speaking on the publication of the report, Minister Donnelly said:
"This report reflects the positive cooperation between the Department of Health, and the Department of Justice relating to the provision of healthcare for prisoners. The report highlights the need to support and grow this cooperation, particularly between the care delivered in prisons and the national health service.
"The Department of Health is committed to working with the Department of Justice and the Irish Prison Service to support this recommendation. I believe that implementation of the actions will contribute to increasing equity to access to quality care in Ireland, in line with the commitments of Sláintecare."
Minister of State at the Department of Health Hildegaarde Naughton added:
“The National Drugs Strategy prioritises the provision of integrated care pathways for prisoners who are identified as high-risk drug users. I therefore welcome the recommendations in the report to improve drug and alcohol services provided by the Irish Prison Service, covering addiction counselling, specialist addiction nursing resources and dual diagnosis services.
"My department will support the close engagement between the IPS (Irish Prison Service), the HSE and other stakeholders to ensure that drug and alcohol services are better integrated between prison and community, so that people leaving prison can access treatment in the community without interruption."
Ministers Harris and Donnelly thanked the Steering Group, and the Irish Prison Service (IPS) for their work with Crowe Ireland on the Report.
The Health Needs Assessment (HNA) Steering Group was established in 2018, following a memorandum of understanding between the then Minister for Justice and Equality and Minister for Health to take forward an independent review of the current and future delivery of appropriate provision of healthcare services to persons in custody.
Crowe Ireland was commissioned by the Irish Prison Service as an independent consultant in late 2019 to conduct a Health Needs Assessment. Progress on the assessment was impacted by COVID restrictions.
Of the 60 recommendations set out within the HNA Report, 31 are made for strengthening delivery of IPS healthcare services whereas 29 are made for improved governance in IPS healthcare services.
31 recommendations are made for strengthening delivery of IPS Healthcare services addressing multiple areas such as:
- Healthcare General Service
- Women’s Healthcare Service
- Mental Health Service
- Addiction and Substance Misuse Services
- Healthcare Information and Systems
Whereas 29 recommendations are made for improved governance in IPS Healthcare Services addressing areas such as:
- Strategic Positioning of Responsibility for Healthcare in Prisons
- Current Structures
- Clinical Governance Structures
- Resourcing Requirements
- Infection Control
With regard to prisoner mental health care and addiction issues, the Health Needs Assessment Report makes recommendations for improvements in these areas which complement those made in September 2022 by the High Level Task Force to consider the mental health and addiction challenges of those who come into contact with the criminal justice sector (HLTF).
The Health Needs Assessment provides a roadmap for the development of health services within the IPS over the coming years.
In fulfilment of a Programme for Government commitment, the Report and Recommendations of the High Level Task Force to consider the mental health and addiction challenges of those who come into contact with the criminal justice sector was published in September 2022. It identifies over 60 recommendations which capture the entirety of an individual’s interactions with the criminal justice system.
The implementation plan published alongside the final report, assigns ownership for each of the recommendations and their expected delivery time-frames. The plan recognises that some recommendations can be achieved quickly (within the next 18 months), while others require a longer lead-in time and are accordingly allocated medium-term (within the next 3 years) or long-term (within the next 5 years).
The Department of Justice and Department of Health colleagues are both committed to advancing these reforms.
A Steering Committee (co-chaired by senior officials from the Department of Justice and the Department of Health) is overseeing progress on the HLTF recommendations.