1279 (2024). Dr Tracey McLellan to the Minister of Corrections

1279 (2024). Dr Tracey McLellan to the Minister of Corrections: How many prisoners, if any, required medical attention between 12 February 2024 and 19 February 2024?

Hon Mark Mitchell: Corrections is statutorily obligated to provide people in prison with access to healthcare that is reasonably equivalent to what is available to them in the community. Corrections employs approximately 190 full time equivalent registered nurses. Specialised medical professionals including Medical Officers and Dentists are contracted to provide basic and necessary services at prison sites. Every person entering prison has their health needs assessed when they arrive, and ongoing care and treatment is given if required. I am advised that healthcare is provided to both remand and sentenced prisoners and includes mental health care. Referrals to secondary or tertiary health care services can be made on an as-required basis on the same basis as for people in the community. I am further advised that providing the number of people that attended an offsite medical appointment would involve manual analysis and require the review of individual files of every person in prison which would involve substantial collation and research of which I am not prepared to ask of my officials for the purposes of this response. The member’s question has been interpreted to relate to the calendar week of 12 to 18 February 2024. I refer the member to the attached table, which provides the number of people in prison that received medical consults during this period.