Report of the Commissioner for Human Rights on the activities of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture in Poland in 2017 24-hour care facilities Introduction 24-hour care facilities are, next to social care homes and nursing facilities, a type of care facilities for senior persons and persons with health problems. The psychological and physical health condition of those patients is related to an increased risk of violation of their rights. The provisions of the Act on Social Welfare set out the standards of work of the facilities that provide 24-hour care for disabled, chronically ill or senior persons (Articles 67-69 of the Act), procedures for the facilities’ supervision and inspection, as well as procedures to be followed in the event of identifying a care facility that operates without the required permit. In order to run a business activity consisting in the operation of a 24-hour care facility, specific requirements have to be met and a permit issued by the head of the voivodeship administration (i.e. the province administration) has to be held. The state’s approach is based on the assumption that care provision to dependent persons is not just an ordinary business activity. On the other hand, by introducing the system of permits for individual persons to provide such services, the legislator has, in fact, admitted that the state is not able to provide such services by itself and, therefore, it finds it necessary to shift a part of such activities to private service providers. ƒƒ In 2017, representatives of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture visited fifteen 24-hour care facilities106 Systemic problems Legality of residents’ stay In the opinion of the NMPT, of particular importance from the point of view of the rights of persons who are residents of 24-hour care facilities, in particular persons who are not formally legally incapacitated but are in a condition that makes it impossible for them to understand their situation properly and to make conscious decisions, is the process of such persons’ placement in the facilities. Persons acting on behalf of such residents are not in any way authorized, in the light of the regulations in force, to make decisions to place the resident in a 106 The following 24-care facilities: „Dom nad Świdrem” in Otwock, KMP.573.3.2017; Dom Opieki „Sielanka” in Palmiry, KMP.573.7.2017; Dom Opieki „Spokojna Przystań” in Baniocha, KMP.573.4.2017; Dom Opieki Nad Osobami Starszymi „Zielony Zakątek” in Ząbki, KMP.573.1.2017; Centrum Opiekuńczo-Rehabilitacyjne „Alter Domus” in Otwock, KMP.573.9.2017; Dom Opieki „Ostoya Homes” in Stare Babice, KMP.573.2.2017; Dom Opieki „Nestoria” in Piaseczno, KMP.573.5.2917; Dom Opieki „Nestor” in Wojszczyce near Pomiechówek, KMP.573.8.2017; Centrum Seniora „Angel Care” in Wrocław, ref.no. BPW.573.1.2017; Dom Opieki „Złota Jesień” in Gdańsk, BPG.573.1.2017; Dom Spokojnej Starości „FiliŻanka” in Gnojnik, KMP.573.13.2017; Dom Opieki „Florans” in Stare Babice, KMP.573.18.2017; Facility for Chronically Ill Female Residents in Warsaw, KMP.573.27.2017; DUOMED s.c in Marki, KMP.573.36.2017; Dom Opieki „Józefina” in Józefów near Warsaw, KMP.573.35.2017 57