THE increase in elderly inmates being incarcerated has resulted in the introduction of caregiving services by the Fiji Corrections Service (FCS).
FCS Commissioner Commander Francis Kean said one of its 15 corrections centres in Fiji was dedicated solely to looking after the elderly.
“Caregiving is a new role now undertaken by corrections,” he said while speaking at the Pacific Regional Legal Aid Conference in Natadola yesterday.
“The influx of elderly prisoners into our corrections centres is alarming but the need to care and provide services to this category of prisoners must continue.
“As part of our desire to meet the provisions of the Mandela Rules (United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners) we have specifically dedicated one of our corrections centres to be there for our elderly, disabled and bedridden prisoners.
“We see this as a smart way of delivering our services which is efficient and effective rather than having dispersed between our 15 corrections centres.”
Mr Kean added that FCS had also invested in employing more medical staff.
“The FCS has made a huge commitment to these rules by recruiting qualified nurses and a senior medical officer.
“All 15 corrections centres now have certified medical personnel in their ranks.
“Similarly, we have invested in the recruitment of an additional six psychologists and four professional counsellors to support the work of the one psychologist which we used to have previously in 2016.
“This capacity has provided corrections with prompt identification and intervention to suspect behavioural patterns of prisoners.”
