The Penal Sanctions Enforcement Administration has procured a total of 12,000 antigen tests for the detection of the coronavirus for persons deprived of liberty at prison correctional institutions (PCIs), as an additional preventive measure for preserving their health. The Administration first procured 2,000 of those tests in November 2020, and then proceeded to procure additional 10,000 tests in early December 2020.
Doctors and medical technicians at the PCIs have undergone the necessary training in administering these tests which have multiple advantages. The test results can be obtained in 20 minutes, and this is especially important for detecting infection among prison or detention arrivals who are asymptomatic carriers of the virus.
A case in point would be the 53 persons in the Special Prison Hospital in Belgrade who were infected in early December 2020. The tests not only helped detect the virus among the newly admitted patients at this hospital, but also those in quarantine which had been introduced as a preventive measure in all PCIs. The number of infected persons includes patients who were already undergoing treatment at the hospital.
The infected persons are feeling well displaying mild symptoms, and they have been under increased medical supervision in a designated pavilion which had been adjusted for the needs of the coronavirus patients. They are receiving treatment from the hospital doctors in collaboration with doctors from the Clinic for Infectious and Tropical Diseases of the Clinical Centre of Serbia and the Institute of Public Health of Serbia Dr Milan Jovanović Batut, respectively.
When in contact with persons deprived of liberty, all hospital (services) staff wear epidemiological masks and visors. While inside a work area — which persons deprived of liberty do not enter — the hospital staff must wear surgical masks.
Since 11 March 2020, the Administration has been implementing strict preventive measures in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. Rules on prison visitations are as follows: checking visitors’ body temperature upon entry, the use of shoe sanitising stations (mats), hand sanitising, and mandatory wearing of face protection masks, gloves, and visors for detainees and convicted persons.
In July 2020, a measure of added psycho-social support during the COVID-10 pandemic was introduced, allowing prisoners at PCIs to use Skype and Viber to contact their families.