Vol. 562 No. 1
440 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if his attention has been drawn to recent research in the Irish Penal Reform Trust report, Out of Sight Out of Mind, showing that closed prisons may both increase and instigate mental illness and to the fact that this is particularly true for juveniles; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5553/03]
The research carried out by the Irish Penal Reform Trust, to which the Deputy refers, focused on the use of padded and strip cells in the prison system, and the mental health of prisoners who have been detained in those cells. The research did not establish any definite link between imprisonment and the development of mental illness, particularly in the context of such illness developing in juveniles.
The Prison Service is committed to health care standards comparable with those pertaining in the wider community outside prison. It is undoubtedly the case that vulnerable and mentally disordered people are among those committed to prison, and it is therefore important to obtain a clear picture of the extent of mental illness among prisoners and to monitor their mental health on an ongoing basis.
In this regard, the incidence of mental illness among prisoners is the subject of a research project currently being undertaken by a team based in the Central Mental Hospital. The research, which is supported by the Irish Prison Service, is well advanced. The definitive results of this research will be published when available.
441 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if his attention has been drawn to the recent Irish Penal Reform Trust report, Out of Sight Out of Mind, highlighting the acute problems of responsibility for mentally ill prisoners with serious personality disorders; the treatment available to these prisoners; the number of medical and para-medical staff employed within the Prison Service to treat those mentally ill prisoners with personality disorders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5554/03]
I am aware of the report to which the Deputy referred.
I am informed by expert advisors that there is significant difference between mental illness and personality disorder. While mental illness falls within the remit of psychiatry in relation to assessment and treatment, the situation regarding what is commonly referred to as personality disorder is much less clear. I understand there is significant professional dispute regarding the "treatability" of such disorder, particularly in the short term.
As the Deputy will be aware, the Mental Health Act 2001, which addresses various matters in relation to the detention and treatment in community psychiatric facilities of persons with mental illness, specifically excludes a diagnosis of personality disorder as a grounds for compulsory detention for treatment.
