TRANSCRIPT
Trent was released from prison on parole eight months ago, and has been battling life threatening health issues ever since.
He narrowly avoided a ruptured gall bladder and was recently diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, which he says was left untreated while in prison.
“They give you two Panadol, and send you on your merry way. That's how it is. People die in jail because they don't get proper medical care.”
Inmate deaths across the country in the last few years have prompted calls for reform of health care for prisoners.
This month an inquest into the death in custody of Yorta Yorta and Gunnaikurnai man Joshua Kerr found his health assessments were inadequate, including correctional officers refusing to open the door of this cell while he was lying unconscious.
The over-representation of incarcerated Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander men and women isn’t a new issue. It’s a structural and systemic problem that Australia has been unable to properly address.
Research has consistently shown how the historical denial of self-determination has placed First Nations peoples at a disadvantage in almost every aspect of life, including healthcare and has led to increased interactions with police.
Healthcare for prisoners across Australia is funded by state and territory governments.
That means they don't have access to Medicare benefits or subsidised drugs listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.
Claude Robinson is the manager for Rainbow Lodge, a residential support program for men to transition back into the community following a period of incarceration.
“The removal of the person from the community is the punishment, and to punish them further because they have pre-existing medical issues or medical issues they caught in prison, I don't think that is fair”
Claude Robinson runs a post-release accommodation program in Sydney, and helps men re-integrate into the federal health care system.
“All our men within the first two days are taken for a full medical assessment, that's how serious it is for us. I would say 80% of people here have drug and alcohol issues, I think over 90% have mental health issues and 60 have pre-existing issues like diabetes. We think if there was continuity of care between criminal justice system and medicare, it would be cheaper for the tax payers and better outcomes for the people we work with”
And that is what the Australian Medical Association is calling on the Federal Government to do.
Professor Steve Robson is the federal president of the AMA.
“Who are particularly vulnerable are Australians from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families who often have health needs over and above other members of the community. They're already at a great disadvantage and because of restrictions on the medical care they can receive, the pharmaceuticals they're allowed to be treated with in these settings, it puts them at even further disadvantage”
A spokesperson for the Department of Health told SBS News the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee will discuss the issues raised by the AMA at their next meeting in March.
