COVID-19 Planning for Federal Corrections
Date: June 10, 2020
Classification: Unclassified
Branch/Agency: CSC
Issue: Currently, across the country, there is one active case of COVID-19 in one out of CSC’s 43 institutions, namely, the Federal Training Centre in the Quebec Region. There are no identified cases in the Atlantic, Ontario, Pacific and the Prairie Regions.
Proposed Response:
- The Correctional Service of Canada is committed to protecting the safety and health of staff, inmates, and the public during these unprecedented times.
- The Service is taking measures to ensure the safety and health of its correctional staff and inmates by following the advice of local Public Health agencies and working very collaboratively with its Union partners.
- Currently, across the country, there is only one active case of COVID-19 in one out of CSC’s 43 institutions, and 99 per cent of the inmates that tested positive since the beginning of this pandemic have now fully recovered.
- To prevent the spread of COVID-19 in its institutions, the Service has suspended:
- Visits from the public
- All temporary absences, unless medically necessary
- Work releases
- Interregional and international transfers of inmates
- The Correctional Service of Canada has implemented measures to prevent the introduction and contain the spread of COVID-19, including:
- Strengthening infection and prevention control measures and cleaning/disinfecting protocols
- Actively screening all staff at the front entrance
- Limiting the movement of inmates and adapting practices to support physical distancing
- Moving to unit-based staffing, to promote physical distancing throughout the institutions
- Providing staff and inmates with masks
- The Service is also:
- Conducting daily wellness checks for signs of symptomatic inmates
- Immediately testing for COVID-19 anyone reporting symptoms
- Expanding health services to a 24/7 capacity.
- Developed guidance for the effective management of inmates testing positive for COVID-19 (i.e. medical isolation)
- Working with local health authorities to ensure inmates’ access to local hospital care, if required
- Implementing its own tracing capability by training over 100 of its employees
- Moving forward and in collaboration with Public Health Agency of Canada, the Service is focusing its efforts on:
- Conducting Infection Prevention and Control and environmental health audits in all its institutions
- Ensuring access to the necessary PPE equipment
- Expanding its testing strategy
- Strengthening public health partnerships
- The Service has provided various PPE items, including nitrile gloves, masks, face shields, isolation gowns, protective safety goggles and cover shoes to staff and inmates at Mission Institution and Port-Cartier Institution.
- The Government of Canada is also intending to provide up to $500,000 to five National Voluntary Organizations to develop pilot projects to assist with the reintegration of offenders under supervision at community-based residential facilities (halfway houses). These are important facilities that provide a bridge between the institution and the community.
- The learnings from these pilot projects will help halfway houses continue to deliver effective programs and services to offenders who are eligible for supervised release in the community and keep halfway house residents and surrounding communities safe during emergencies such as COVID-19.
- On the question of reducing the size of the inmate population, the Correctional Service of Canada and the Parole Board of Canada are working collaboratively to facilitate the safe release of federal inmates into the community with public safety being paramount in all discretionary release decisions. As mandated by the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, all releases to the community happen within existing authorities.
- While on release, offenders are seen by their Parole Officers (POs) at a level that responds to their risk and needs. Supervision in the community includes meeting with the offenders in a variety of locations, assessing their home/work environments as well as liaising with other community partners and their contacts.
- In response to the pandemic, the Correctional Service of Canada has been proactively reviewing eligible non-violent lower risk inmates and referring them to the Parole Board of Canada for consideration, including those with underlying medical conditions that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19.
Background:
The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is focusing its efforts on minimizing the risk of spreading COVID-19 to institutions. CSC has strengthened infection and prevention procedures to protect staff, offenders, and volunteers. CSC is also working with inmates to review existing treatment plans with a particular focus on older offenders and those more vulnerable due to pre-existing underlying health issues.
CSC is assessing any offenders exhibiting symptoms consistent with COVID-19. Symptomatic individuals that meet public health criteria will be tested, provided with immediate clinical interventions as required, and CSC will contact local public health. CSC is collaborating with provincial and territorial public health laboratories to ensure that persons under investigation for COVID-19 are confirmed or ruled out through laboratory testing. Additionally, inmates are being kept informed through regular communiques.
CSC is continuing ongoing communications with staff, inmates, and visitors on preventative measures consistent with public health guidance, including hygiene practices, physical distancing and increased signage.
Current Measures
CSC is focusing on critical operations. To prevent the spread of COVID-19, in all of our institutions, CSC has temporarily suspended visits to inmates, all temporary absences (unless medically necessary), work releases for offenders, and all inter-regional and international transfers of inmates. This will be reassessed on an ongoing basis as the situation evolves.
CSC has also enhanced cleaning protocols, including disinfecting common areas and high-contact surfaces. We continue to educate staff and offenders around prevention and the spread of illness, including the importance of good hygiene practices through posters, fact sheets, and ongoing written and verbal communication. Direction was provided to staff on the type of cleaning to be undertaken in institutions on a regular basis and when a COVID-19 case is either suspected or confirmed.
In addition, sites must implement droplet and contact precautions when a staff member is within two meters of an inmate who is under investigation for COVID-19. This includes the use of gowns, gloves, face shields, and masks for all staff. Inmates are also being provided with masks.
On the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) and Environmental Health audits, CSC is working with PHAC and local health departments and community experts to have independent, expert-led audits completed in all of its facilities.
In support of readiness planning, CSC is actively engaging with the Council of Chief Medical Officers of Health and their Special Advisory Committee. CSC is also in regular bilateral contact with Public Health Agency of Canada to review elements of our planning and receive expert feedback as required.
Cases among Inmates
As of June 8, 2020, 360 inmates have tested positive, and 357 or 99% have recovered. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been outbreaks at five institutions with three of them now fully resolved: Port-Cartier Institution, in the Quebec Region; Grand Valley Institution for Women, in the Ontario Region; and, Mission Institution, in the Pacific Region. There are two institutions with remaining outbreaks: Joliette Institution for Women, in the Quebec Region, which has no remaining active cases, but can’t be declared virus-free until a set period of time has passed without a new case; and, Federal Training Centre, also in the Quebec Region, which has one active case. To date, there have been two deaths. Out of 140 CSC employees who have tested positive, 123 or 88% have recovered.
Personal Protective Equipment
CSC continue to take exceptional measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in all CSC institutions to limit the risk to inmates and staff, including having everyone at sites wear masks.
Despite the existence of personal protective equipment (PPE) and associated guidelines and training prior to the onset of the pandemic, given the need for widespread use of PPE during these times, revised information on the use of PPE has been promulgated including posters to guide staff in proper Donning and Doffing procedures (issued April 3) and updated Guidelines for the Use of PPE (issued April 8).
Between March 30, 2020 and May 15, 2020, CSC has provided various PPE items, including nitrile gloves, masks with face shields, N-95 masks, medical masks, non-medical masks, disposable isolation gowns, washable gowns, thermometers, face shields, disinfectant wipes, protective safety goggles and cover shoes to staff and inmates at Mission Institution and Port-Cartier Institution.
Financial Government Support
On June 9, 2020, the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, the Honourable Bill Blair, announced the Government of Canada’s intention to provide up to $500,000 to five National Voluntary Organizations (NVOs) for them to develop pilot projects aimed at adapting important services that assist with the reintegration of offenders under supervision at community-based residential facilities (halfway houses), and to develop knowledge to help similar organizations learn from the innovative responses that have been implemented during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Release of Offenders
The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) and the Parole Board of Canada (PBC) are working collaboratively to facilitate the safe release of federal inmates into the community with public safety being paramount in all discretionary release decisions. As mandated by the Corrections and Conditional Release Act (CCRA), all releases to the community happen within existing authorities.
CSC and PBC continue to process eligible inmates for release in accordance with the law. A number of considerations go into release decision-making with public safety being the paramount consideration. COVID-19 and other health related issues are only one of the many considerations taken into account when releasing offenders into the community so it is not possible to provide a number offenders who have been released solely due to COVID-19. Below is data on releases for the past period.
In response to the pandemic, CSC has been proactively reviewing eligible non-violent lower risk inmates and referring them to the PBC for consideration, including those with underlying medical conditions that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19. As noted by the PBC on their website, they will consider the offender’s health or health risk posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, if relevant as part of the risk assessment, along with all other information on file.
CSC and PBC have worked to streamline the case preparation process for offenders. In addition, PBC is working to ensure cases are dealt with as expeditiously as possible, using risk- and evidence-based decision-making.
On average, 600 offenders are released a month. This occurs, through parole, statutory release, or expiration of sentence. Since the beginning of March 2020, the federal custody population has declined by 743 inmates (as of June 7, 2020). This reduction is the result of fewer admissions from the provinces and territories coupled with continued releases into the community. In total, from June 1, 2020 to June 7, 2020, 123 inmates were released from federal custody; 51 inmates were released on Day Parole, none on Full Parole, 70 on Statutory Release and 2 other.
CSC is also working with the PBC to identify offenders already released in the community and those who may become eligible for release, who can reside in a family home, as opposed to a community residential facility, when it is a safe and viable option.
We are engaging with our community partners on an ongoing basis to ensure that offenders on conditional release have a safe, secure and supportive environment to which they can return. This is an important part of any safe and successful release into the community.
Victim Consideration
Case Management Teams have been instructed to ensure continued consideration of victim concerns into decision-making, and continued notification to victims, thereby upholding the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights.
As per CD 784, Parole Officers must notify the Victim Services Unit when beginning case preparation for CSC/PBC-authority release decisions and request to obtain victim information as well as any victim statements, and take victim considerations into account in release planning and recommendations for decision. They must also notify Victim Services Unit of changes in offenders’ circumstances for which notification may be required.
Contacts:
Prepared by: Jessica Martineau, Officer Parliamentary Relations, 613-943-1726
Approved by: Kirstan Gagnon, Assistant Commissioner, Communications & Engagement, 613-995-6867
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