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39.
All juveniles deprived of their liberty should be properly interviewed and physically
examined by a medical doctor as soon as possible after their admission to the detention centre;
save for in exceptional circumstances, the interview/examination should be carried out on the
day of admission. However, a newly-arrived juvenile's first point of contact with the health
care service could be a fully-qualified nurse who reports to a doctor.
If properly performed, such medical screening on admission should enable the
establishment's health care service to identify young persons with potential health problems
(e.g. drug addiction, suicidal tendencies). The identification of such problems at a sufficiently
early stage will facilitate the taking of effective preventive action within the framework of the
establishment's medico-psycho-social programme of care.
40.
Further, it is axiomatic that all juveniles deprived of their liberty should be able to
have confidential access to a doctor at any time, regardless of the regime (including
disciplinary confinement) to which they may be subjected. Appropriate access to a range of
specialist medical care, including dentistry, should also be guaranteed.
41.
The task of the health care service in any place of detention should not be limited to
treating sick patients; it should also be entrusted with responsibility for social and preventive
medicine. In this connection, the CPT wishes to highlight two aspects of particular concern as
regards juveniles deprived of their liberty, namely, inmates' nutrition and the provision of
health education.
Health care staff should play an active part in monitoring the quality of the food
which is being provided to inmates. This is particularly important for juveniles, who may not
have reached their full growth potential. In such cases, the consequences of inadequate
nutrition may become evident more rapidly - and be more serious - than for those who have
reached full physical maturity.
It is also widely recognised that juveniles deprived of their liberty have a tendency
to engage in risk-taking behaviour, especially with respect to drugs (including alcohol) and
sex. In consequence, the provision of health education relevant to young persons is an
important element of a preventive health care programme. Such a programme should, in
particular, include the provision of information about the risks of drug abuse and about
transmittable diseases.
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