Medium-term Deprivation of Liberty Now it is appropriate to mention the recent Decision of the Spanish Constitutional Court (abbreviated as STC in Spanish) 17/2013, of 31 January, in which the high court considers, in it legal basis no. 14, that “as regards the purpose of the search itself, it is beyond question that a measure such as the one established in the con­ tested precept may constitute, in certain situations, a means necessary for the pro­ tection of safety in a detention center, thus ensuring an orderly cohabitation there­ in. (...) upon adoption of such measure, it is necessary to weigh, in an adequate and balanced manner, on the one hand, the seriousness of the interference it entails for personal privacy, and on the other hand, if such measure is indispensable to ensure the defense of public interest, expressed in the maintenance of public order and safety of the center, which it strives to protect. It is naturally well understood that the respect of this requirement needs substantiation if the measure by the Admin­ istration, given that only such substantiation will allow it to be valued by the concerned person, in the first place, taking into account the right of inmates, according to Art. 62 quáter of the Organic Law on Foreign Nationals, to submit complaints and claims or to have the assistance of their lawyer [Art. 62 bis.f) of the Organic Law on Foreign Nationals] and, as the case may be, of the judicial body in charge of controlling the admission measure decided by such body, so that it may assess the reason which may justify, in view of the circumstances of the case, the sacrifice of the fundamental right (Art. 62.6 of the Organic Law on Foreign Nationals)”. In certain situations, the 51. As regards the means of restraint, either physical personal restraint or the measure for temporary separation (isolation), referred to in paragraph 49 and which was the subject of complaint by inmates, the aforementioned Decision of the Span­ ish Constitutional Court establishes, in its legal basis no. 15, the following: “Its adop­ tion is only justified in specific scenarios, legally defined as regards certain behaviors of inmates which the Administration must prevent or avoid, since undoubtedly the safety and correct order of the establishment would be affected in case of there being an escape, violence towards persons, damages of things or disobedience towards the staff. (...) the adoption of these measures is both limited by its exclusive purpose, which is the reestablishment of normalcy at the center, and their limited duration, since they may only subsist for the time strictly necessary for the elimination of the circumstance that gave rise to it, which must be ultimately assessed by the judge”. The use of means of 52. As was already referred to in paragraph 93 of the 2011 Annual Report, the medical assistance at the different CIEs was outsourced by means of a contract with the company SERMEDES, up to the 16th of August 2012 and, since that date, it had been awarded by public tender to the company CLÍNICA MADRID. The three multidisciplinary visits were conducted when the first of them was pro­ viding services therein. Therefore the Ombudsman Institution was able to assess if the protocols were the same at the three centers and if the shortcomings identi­ fied in the first and second visits were being remedied. The medical assistance 53. At the CIEs visited there was no medical assistance in afternoon or evening hours. The same could be said of the absence of a University Registered Nurse (ab­ breviated as DUE in Spanish) in the evening. As was already referred to in para­ graph 93 of the 2011 Annual Report, this absence may compromise the right of It has been requested that THE OMBUDSMAN OF SPAIN search is justified. It must be evaluated, in an adequate and balanced manner, on the one hand, the seriousness of the interference it entails for personal privacy, and on the other hand, if the measure is indispensable to ensure defense of public interest restraint is only justified in specific and legally defined scenarios service is outsourced medical assistance is provided on a permanent basis 69