As for the detainee, his / her thermoscreening and collection of epidemiological anamnesis353 take place
during the admission to the facility. If a detainee has a fever while admission, he / she is transferred to
the fever center. The detainee is transferred to the fever center even if he / she is diagnosed with fever
while being in the cell. Examination of the medical records revealed that in some of the isolators where
the doctor is present for 24 hours, thermoscreening of detainees are conducted several times a day. It is
important routine periodic thermoscreening of detainees to take place in all isolators to facilitate the
timely detection of suspicious cases.
It is noteworthy that after being transferred to a fever center, medical personnel of the temporary
detention isolators are not provided with information about the test response of the transferred patient.
It should be noted that in case of a negative answer the persons detained under criminal procedure are
transferred back to the temporary detention isolator. Most of the persons under administrative detention
are not returned to the facility and the answer to their test remains unknown for the medical personnel.
If the detainee was diagnosed with fever while being in the cell, the cell is cleaned with a special liquid
after he/she leaves the cell, and if he / she did not have a fever and feels well, as in previous years the
cell is cleaned by the maid after the detainee leaves the cell.354 The Public Defender considers that in
order to timely detect a case of infection with the new coronavirus, it is important to test the detainee
with a rapid antigen test while his / her placement in the temporary detention isolators. Therefore, it will
be crucial to train the medical staff of the temporary detention isolators in conducting test.
3.5.3. Withdrawal syndrome management
Article 16 of the Instruction on medical care of persons placed in temporary detention isolators of the
Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia355 ensures access to substitution therapy. For the purpose of
continuous substitution therapy, individuals involved in the methadone and suboxin substitution program
are smoothly transferred from the temporary detention isolator to the provider institution for receiving
daily allowance. However, due to the epidemiological situation, according to the amendments of 19 March
2020, made to the Order no. 01-41/N of the Minister of Labour, Health Care and Social Security of Georgia
of 3 July 2014 on the Special Substitution Programme for Treating Drug Addiction an exception was made
for those involved in the methadone programme and each could take the five-day dose home.356
Consequently, individuals involved in methadone substitution therapy receive a 5-day dose, which, in
some cases, is consumed before the specified days, or could be deprived as an evidence at the time of
arrest. In such cases, if a person was arrested and transferred to a TDI, before expiring the dose taken in
Information about the illness collected by the doctor as a result of interviewing the patient or his/her relatives, available
at: < https://bit.ly/3a3us7J > [last visited: 10.02.2021].
354 Similar to previous years, temporary detention isolators are disinfected and disinsected once a month.
355 Approved by the Order N691 of the Minister of Internal Affairs of Georgia of December 8, 2016.
356 Part 81 was added to Article 7 of the Order, according to which, during epidemic, pandemic, epidemiological outbreak,
in order to prevent the spread of the disease, as an exception, the dose of patient's substitute drug sufficient for a maximum
of 5 days, should be delivered/issued by a program employee, family member, a მინდობილი, or legal representative
(based on the application of the authorized person and the decision of the Medical Advisory Commission). Based on the
amendment to this Order made on September 8, 2020, the said entry was removed.
353
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