A psychiatrist who treats inmates at Edmonton’s Remand Center (ERC) says it’s “remarkable” that no inmates at the facility have died by suicide.
A public death investigation into the death of Timothy James McConnell, also known as TJ, began Monday in Edmonton’s Justice Court. Mr. McConnell died by suicide in his cell at the remand center on January 11, 2021.
McConnell’s family and Alberta harm reduction activists both say his death could have been prevented and raise widespread concerns about the lack of mental health and medical support at the ERC, Canada’s largest prison. It claims to show.
A death investigation is a legal proceeding before a judge to determine the circumstances of a death. Judges cannot hold people responsible for deaths, but they can make recommendations aimed at preventing similar deaths in the future.
McConnell was arrested and jailed in September 2021 on charges of intentional theft and store trespassing.
McConnell suffered from bipolar disorder with ADHD, depression and manic episodes, said his mother, Lana Green.
Monday’s investigation revealed that 23-year-old McConnell requested medical services multiple times in the months leading up to her death.
“I’m sorry for the inconvenience. I know you’re on the waiting list, but I’ve been here for four months and soon I’ll be back on the streets surrounded by drugs and desperate addicts. ” he wrote in the request. January 1, 2021.
Days before his death, McConnell was placed on a waiting list for Suboxone, a drug used to treat opioid withdrawal symptoms.
“Please allow me to begin Suboxone treatment. I have no intention of abusing this privilege.”
Dr. Curtis Woods, a forensic psychiatrist, was the first witness to testify at the inquiry and said in court Monday that Mr. McConnell had arranged to meet with him about a month before his death. However, the 23-year-old refused to come to the nurse’s office at the appointed time.
Woods said it’s not uncommon for patients in the ERC to not show up for appointments, and they don’t necessarily have follow-up visits.
Harm reduction advocates gathered in Churchill Square on Monday to support Lana Green (right) and call for improved medical and mental health services in Alberta’s prisons. Ms. Green’s son died by suicide at the Edmonton Remand Center in January 2021. (Jamie McCannell/CBC)
He said he hopes the remand center will hire a full-time psychiatrist. Currently, he and two other doctors each meet with patients one day a week at the prison.
Wood said he believes the ERC’s mental health and medical staff provide quality care, but the mental health department is “choked.”
He said the majority of the ERC’s 1,500 inmates suffer from addiction, and a high percentage of them suffer from mental illness.
“It’s amazing how many people are in that prison and how few people commit suicide each year,” Woods said.
At the time of his death, McConnell was in a general ward, not a mental health unit.
Brandi Currie, a clinical social work therapist who worked on ERC’s mental health team, testified Monday that the team was overwhelmed by demand for services at the time of McConnell’s death.
“The workload was extremely high,” she said.
Curry, who has been released from prison and is now in private practice, told the court he did not believe he had ever interacted with McConnell.
But after hearing of his death, she emailed another ERC employee to share her concerns about the impact of COVID-19 protocols on inmates.
“They were isolated and kept in solitary confinement for long periods of time without stimulation,” she said, adding that some had repeatedly sought help from mental health teams without receiving a response.
Rallying for change
During the midday interrogation break, Green joins members of Moms Stop the Harm in Churchill Square to demand accountability for the lack of proper treatment and care in Alberta’s prisons. Participated in the meeting.
Green said her son was full of energy and had a will to live. She said he loved sports and was friends with everyone, but after suffering multiple concussions as a teenager, he began experiencing mental health issues and later became addicted. Ta.
Green says Alberta’s recovery-focused response to the opioid crisis misses the point. The government is focused on developing additional treatment beds and is considering passing legislation that would force some adults into addiction treatment.
“We don’t have to force people to do it. We just need to give them access when they ask for it, if they want it. Every human being, whether they use drugs or not, should be treated with dignity and respect.” We should,” Green said.
Brandon Shaw, a 29-year-old incarcerated in the ERC, attended the rally and spoke about his experience trying to access medical care and support in prison. Although he is sober now, he said it was incredibly difficult for him to receive care while incarcerated.
“Those who failed to test TJ need to be held accountable. The bottom line is that investigations into these deaths continue and that people are not doing their jobs and treating us as human beings. So when are we going to hold these people accountable? ”
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