Inmates with Medical, Mental Health Problems Face Waits at Los Angeles County Jails
Wait times to see a doctor for Los Angeles County jail inmates with medical or psychological problems can "drag on for two or three days" because of understaffing, the Los Angeles Times reports. Before such inmates are assigned to bunks at county jails, federal regulations require that they be seen by county jail medical staff. Under a 2002 agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice, inmates must be asked "a detailed series of questions" about their medical histories, prescriptions and mental health. Any inmates with health problems are diverted to county jail medical clinics, where as many as 15% of inmates who require medical care have to wait more than 24 hours before seeing a physician, according to Lt. Steve Smith, who manages the jail's Medical Services Bureau.
For example, last Thursday afternoon, 398 inmates waited to be examined by one of two doctors and 13 nurses, and more than 250 were still waiting at 11 p.m. to see the one physician on night duty. "There is only one physician, and I can't see everybody at once. You need more physicians. It's that simple," Dr. Raleigh Saddler at the Inmate Reception Center said.
The county jail system has a 15% vacancy rate for physicians, but Smith said, "Even if we fill all of our vacancies, we still need additional staff." Currently, the system has 22 physicians and about 600 nurses.
Smith said he is hoping for $2 million in increased county funding to convert a closed section of the Twin Towers jail into a medical clinic to address a space shortage for incoming inmates, the Times reports (Fox, Los Angeles Times, 8/15).