Prisoner Support and Treatment

The Hon. S.G. WADE (14:26): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking questions of the Minister for Correctional Services regarding restraint of prisoners in health facilities.

Leave granted.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: In the Legislative Council yesterday, the minister advised that the SA Department for Correctional Services is working closely with New South Wales correctional services, 'in the development of a soft form of restraint'. The minister later in his answer went on to say, and I quote:

…if these technologies become available that are appropriate and that are affordable and do meet all the necessary security criteria, then of course it will be something that we actively look at.

In a letter to the Ombudsman on 11 July 2012, the chief executive of the Department for Correctional Services advised the Ombudsman that, and I quote:

…the department agrees that soft restraints should be used for prisoners who are hospitalised, and, where suitable, in other cases of prisoner movement in non-secure locations. The department has commenced investigating suitable soft restraints. Until such soft restraints have been identified and procured, the department will continue to use the standard restraints but remains committed to introducing suitable soft restraints in the future.

This week, almost four years after that letter was written, after yet another Ombudsman's inquiry, the department is going to have another look. In the Ombudsman's most recent report, the Ombudsman reports:

…there was at least one occasion during Prisoner A's stay at the RAH where medical staff made an attempt to have the hard cuff regime moderated with softer restraints. Given Prisoner A's co-operative demeanour on admission and his heavily sedated state for much of his stay in the RAH, it is reasonable to conclude that the DCS compliance officer should have consulted with and sought [advice]…from relevant medical and mental health staff to assess whether a modified approach to restraint was warranted.

My questions are:

1. What was the outcome of the 2012 review of the department's use of soft restraints?

2. Considering that SA Health provides in-prison health services and out-of-prison health services, is SA Health being actively involved in the conversation between the New South Wales department and the South Australian Department for Correctional Services?

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS (Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety) (14:29): I thank the honourable member for their question. Yes, I appreciate the Hon. Mr Wade referring back to my remarks that I made yesterday during the course of question time. I have been very clear, I think with this chamber and with the Department for Correctional Services and, indeed, the South Australian public, that I have asked the Department for Correctional Services to come back to me and provide me not with what information that speaks to the recommendations that they will implement; I have asked them instead to come back to me and tell me what recommendations cannot be implemented and why?

I'm very hopeful that that information will be coming back to me as quickly as possible, which will give me an insight as to whether or not those recommendations are being implemented and, if not, why not. Regarding the soft restraints, I did refer, as the Hon. Mr Wade mentioned, to the fact that DCS is working closely and collaboratively with the New South Wales corrections service to develop a soft form of restraint. I am advised that that work remains ongoing. I'm happy to make inquiries and seek information from the department regarding the 2012 review.

What I would say generally, though—and I think it is really important that everyone is conscious of this when we contemplate this difficult situation—is that when a prisoner acquires an injury through a restraint, such as a handcuff, they must be acting rather—well, violently may be too strong a word but they must be acting in a very physically intense manner in order to be able to acquire the sort of injury of the likes of the one that we saw vision of on the ABC news the other evening.

It is important to remember that, if someone is wearing a restraint and they acquire an injury as a result of wearing that restraint, it is not the restraint alone that has caused it. It also takes a degree of force or repetitive action, in order to be able to acquire that injury which, in and of itself, may reasonably indicate why that person has been restrained in the first place. Yes, we want to make sure that we are treating all prisoners humanely. Of course we don't want to be seeing prisoners who are in hospital, for instance, with the view of having medical treatment, walking away with a different injury than they had when they walked in.

These are obvious principles which I would expect all to support. But, under no circumstances, can we find ourselves diminishing security standards and putting at risk the work of DCS staff—

The Hon. K.L. Vincent interjecting:

The Hon. P. MALINAUSKAS: —security staff, hospital staff or, indeed, the general public. The Hon. Ms Vincent interjects. I know that no-one is suggesting that that is the case, but you can't contemplate one fact without contemplating the risk that is associated with it, which is why we need to approach this subject in a methodical way, clearly thought through. But just so everyone is clear about what this government's position is and what my position is as minister, safety has to be paramount.

The safety of the general public, staff working within the hospital system and staff working within Corrections has to be paramount, first and foremost. If we can honour that objective and, at the same time, reduce risk of injury through restraints to inmates, then, that is great. That is something we all support, but we have to make sure that safety is at the top of the pecking order when it comes to priorities. That is a principle which I wholeheartedly endorse and which I very much hope the department stands by, but we look forward to advances of new technology that may come online in due course.

The PRESIDENT: Supplementary, the Hon. Mr Wade.