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Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy

The Hall of Shame award today goes to San Quentin for its prison health clinics. A new report by independent examiners shows that despite court orders, they operate in filthy conditions. San Quentin should be closed. It will be interesting to see Gov. Arnold Schwarznegger's reaction to the report. If he's serious about prison reform, this is a good place to start.

Doctors and nurses misdiagnosed illnesses, gave patients the wrong medications, neglected them for months and even years or delayed sending them to emergency rooms until they were fatally ill, the experts discovered.

The examiners watched a dentist examine inmate after inmate while wearing the same pair of gloves. Records were in such disarray that doctors reported that they could not find medical files for at least 30% of the inmates they examined.

Based on visits to the prison earlier this year, the experts' April 8 report documented filthy clinics and patient housing. Dental examinations are done in a place without light or water; inmates are initially evaluated in a room without a sink for washing hands; nurses until recently used a broom closet as an examination room; and wheelchair-bound patients cannot roll into the hospital cells on their own because the doors are too narrow.

"We found a facility so old, antiquated, dirty, poorly staffed, poorly maintained, with inadequate medical space and equipment and overcrowded that it is our opinion that it is dangerous to house people there with certain medical conditions and also dangerous to use this facility as an intake facility," the experts wrote.

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  • Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#1)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Apr 14, 2005 at 11:12:16 AM EST
    Developers would be thrilled to see San Quentin closed. The land alone where it is located is probably worth the better part of $100 million in the current real estate market. That said, I can think of no group of people less worthy of such land than the parasites that call themselves "developers." That said, San Quentin is ancient, in the US sense of the word, in that parts of it are more than a hundred years old. Of course it should be closed. Finally, I am curious if the government of the State of California could perhaps devote even more of its budget to the Department of Corrections to build more prisons? I would personally like the closing of San Quentin to be the beginning of the shrinking of the absurdly overgrown prison system. Of course, I am dreaming. Cheers, Alan Tomlinson

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#3)
    by wishful on Thu Apr 14, 2005 at 11:55:15 AM EST
    Johnny, are you a member of the CA prison guards' union?

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#2)
    by Johnny on Thu Apr 14, 2005 at 01:15:33 PM EST
    These people do not deserve any but the most inhumane and degrading treatment. They are prisoners. [sarcasm] [Ed. Obscenity deleted. ]

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#4)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Thu Apr 14, 2005 at 01:46:32 PM EST
    Alan, your post is appreciated and very true. I'm currently reading George Lakoff's book "don't think of an elephant" I would highly recommend it to all frustrated progressives. After reading the first chapter these Republican strategies make perfect sense in the construct Lakoff provides.

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#5)
    by Johnny on Fri Apr 15, 2005 at 01:08:44 AM EST
    Wishful, If it were not for the sarcasm caveat, it would appear as if I were... But no, I am one those humans with a conscience...

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#6)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Fri Apr 15, 2005 at 05:21:05 AM EST
    It's not just CA. Every prison is bad. The waiting list for a dental procedure in the Feds is about 18 months...at which point it's no longer necessary

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#7)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Fri Apr 15, 2005 at 06:26:12 AM EST
    Seems like there is a lot of idle labor sitting around they could give a broom or a mop to- or would that violate their "rights"?

    Re: Report: Prison Clinics at San Quentin Filthy (none / 0) (#9)
    by Talkleft Visitor on Fri Apr 15, 2005 at 02:45:00 PM EST
    DA- I'll just hang with the five virgins, thankyouverymuch...

    Common sense and supreme court law (Gideon vs wainwright) dictate the state has an obligation to provide adequate medical care to all prisoners in their custody. All you have to do is imagine yourself sick or injured in prison/jail (and it could happen) to know exactly what that should mean--ADEQUATE CARE. However, the truth is that state-run prisons and now private "medical" providers have an horrific record of preventable deaths in dozens of states. This is what happens when private stock-traded prison HMO's are let loose in custodial settings, where their abuses can be easily covered up. Attitude Example: In the medical clinic of an Illinois County Jail I saw this sign prominently posted on the wall: "Dead inmates don't need medical care." This is not just a joke, it's the prevailing mode of operation.