Report of the Commissioner for Human Rights on the activities of the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture in Poland in 2017 Psychiatric hospitals Introduction ƒƒ In 2017, 15 psychiatric hospitals or psychiatric wards in general hospitals were visited To 7 institutions, thematic visits were held to verify the availability of psychiatric care for minors109. In the remaining 8 institutions110 the visits focused on the state of observance of the rights of adults who were placed there against their will i.e. without their consent, and adults who agreed to be placed in the institution but while staying there changed their decision. ƒƒ 8 visited hospitals and only 3 experts – psychiatrists who took part in the NMPT visits as experts! The NMPT encounters a problem with finding physicians willing to cooperate with the Mechanism, which problem is growing every year . Systemic problems Underfinancing of psychiatric wards Easy and quick access to a patient’s bed in the case of emergency should be a standard. However, none of the visited institutions ensured access to patients beds from three sides. The issue of shortage of funds allocated by the National Health Fund to treatment in psychiatric hospitals has been raised by the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture since 2012, when the NMPT presented a report on the issue, drawn up by the Commissioner for Human Rights. This problem has not lost its validity in 2017. Its source is in the assessment of the CMB, omitting by the NFZ in the financial assumption that in addition to psychiatric treatment, the hospital must provide often more expensive somatic treatment (which is particularly needed for older people), medicines (medicines, insulin for diabetics, etc.), as well as transport for needed consultations. 109 Results of the visits will be presented in a special thematic report to be drawn up by the NMPT 110 Psychiatric Ward of the Psychiatric Care Institution “Salus” in Szczecinek,, KMP.574.1.2017; Psychiatric Ward of the Department of Psychiatry, Combat Stress and Psychotraumatology of the Military Institute of Medicine in Warsaw, KMP.574.13.2017; Psychiatric Ward “Oddział Psychoatryczny ZOZ sp. z o.o in Świętochłowice, KMP 574.1.2017; Psychiatric Ward of the Municipal Hospital in Sosnowiec, KMP.574.14.2017; Psychiatric Ward of St. John Paul II Municipal Hospital in Elbląg, , KMP.574.16.2017; Psychiatric Ward of the 7th Army Hospital for Navy in GdanskKMP.574.15.2017; Psychiatric Ward of the General Hospital in Kolno, KMP.574.18.2017; Psychiatric Ward of the Mental Health Centre in Słupsk, BPG.574.2.2017 59