Lawyer concerned psychiatric medication withheld from inmates

A Toronto lawyer is raising concerns about Thunder Bay District Jail, where he says two of his clients were denied access tonecessarypsychiatric medications.

Devin Bains saida recent manslaughter trial was delayed because his clientwas unfit to continue without his medication.

Bains said apsychiatrist flew to Thunder Bay from Toronto toindependently assess his clientand determined he needed the medication. After that,the jail reinstatedit.

"(What) needs to be asked ...is why that couldn't have been done within the jail itself," said Bains.

He said the problem hasimplications for the justice system as a whole.

"We of course don't want inmatesto be denied their right to trial or their opportunity to be heard because their ability to have a voice is interfered with by their psychiatric problems," said Bains.

'Disciplinary reasons'

He acknowledgeshisclientshad beenmisusing their drugs in some way within the jail.

But Bainssaid medication should never be withheld for"disciplinary reasons."

"At the end of the day, itmeantinmates were not receiving medication that they required to get by," he said.

Nine complaints specifically concerning psychiatric medication have been filed by inmates of the Thunder Bay jail over the last two years, according to the office of the Ontario Ombudsman.

Speaking on behalf of the jail, Ontario's Ministry of Correctional Services said it would be inappropriate to comment on a specific inmate's health and associated treatments. Butin an email, spokesperson Brent Ross said the ministryhasprocedures in place to deliver health care services.

"Just like in the community, medications are prescribed by doctors," Ross wrote. "The medications are then administered to the inmates by a nurse. Ministry officials do not interfere with medical decisions or direct medical professionals to provide specific courses of treatment."

A difficult balance

According to one psychiatrist who practises in jailsin Manitoba, it is difficultto balance patient care with security.

"This is the challengeto prescribe needed medications for individuals who definitely require them to benefit and function better, but also to prevent those medications from either being misused or diverted," said Dr. Stanley Yaren.

Yaren said his ultimate responsibility is to advocate for his patients' mental healthneeds. "It's... not appropriate for (a) health care professional to be in a punitive role with an individual," he said."We're there to provide forpatients' wellbeing."

Yarensaidifan inmate in his care is caughtmisusingmedication, he tries to work with corrections officials to come up with a solution.

That could meanhaving a nursesuperviseeverydose,he said.

"Some arrangement would be made for it to be dispensed on a daily basis," he said. "And what might be further called for is for the individual to undergo 'mouth checks' (to make sure the inmate doesn't just pretend to swallow it)."