Special medical facility at the Stein correctional institution – inadequate care In the report of the previous year (see NPM Report 2014, p. 103 et seq.), serious accusations were made with respect to the medical and therapeutic care in the special medical facility and out-patient clinic of Stein correctional institution. The NPM also demanded it be ensured that health care is provided in conformity with fundamental rights. Inadequate nursing measures Several reviews by the NPM focusing on nursing care measures and medical and therapeutic care resulted in numerous criticisms and proposals for improvement in the reporting year. The commissions gained the impression that a lack of basic nursing and therapeutic care still exists and that the nursing staff at the special medical facility at the Stein correctional institution did not actively attend to the detainees who were in need of nursing care. In general, the patients said that the nursing staff was not interested in the state of their health and their nursing needs. Disinterest among the nursing staff One inmate, who could only move about in a wheelchair, said he was in great pain because his buttocks and groin were open. However, his wounds had not been examined by a physician for a long time. When he used the intercom of the cell to report his pain, the nursing staff did not give him any painkillers, but merely replied: “We can’t do anything about that”. Another affected person stated that the nursing staff pushed him and his wheelchair into the shower every two days and left him there to take care of himself. He was often in pain. Once he fell out of his wheelchair in the sanitary facilities and lay on the floor for 20 to 30 minutes before someone came to his assistance. 20 to 30 minutes without assistance The commission gained the impression that patients who utilise the intercom available in the cell to report pain or make complaints are often labelled as complainers and met with defensive statements from the nursing staff. The commission pinpointed another deficiency in care, i.e. that the employees of the Stein special medical facility, who were questioned, believed that many patients were merely pretending to be in pain. The nursing staff came to this conclusion because many detainees kept asking for additional and different painkillers. One such person was given a placebo injection when he complained of pain. He felt better after that. The nursing staff saw this as “proof” that the patient was pretending to be in pain. “Placebo injections” Another criticism was that only two nurses are present to care for 40 patients at times. As already reported last year, detainees stated that they themselves take care of seriously ill fellow prisoners and monitor their bodily care. Sick inmates cared for by fellow prisoners 100