The Council of Europe continues to support Romania in its efforts to further strengthen the provision of health care, including mental health, in their prisons and closed institutions in line with the Council of Europe standards and case law of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR). In this regard, it implements a continuation project that commenced on 1 January 2026. It will build on the results achieved during the previous project stages, aiming to extend support, deepen the areas of intervention and ensure sustainability of accomplishments. 

The project is implemented by the Cooperation in Police and Deprivation of Liberty Division in collaboration with the main national partners, namely the Ministry of Health, the National Administration of Penitentiaries and the Ministry of Justice. It is expected to support the Romanian authorities in continuing their efforts to improve the medical treatment and care, including the psychiatric care to those placed in closed institutions in line with the Council of Europe standards and the ECtHR case law. It will provide further expertise and capacity building support to the implementation of the reforms concerned.

Enhancement of the quality of health care, including mental health, of the persons deprived of their liberty by providing appropriate physical and psychiatric care in a medical and therapeutic environment is set as a main goal of the project. To this end, it will focus on policy, regulatory framework and operational approaches and strive to achieve the following outcomes:

• Further align regulatory framework for provision and organisation of health care, including mental health, in closed institutions with international standards and best practices
• Further equip medical and non-medical staff of the penitentiary system and civilian sector with tools, knowledge, and skills on selected issues relevant to mental health of those placed in the closed institutions
• Further promote work within the penitentiary service aiming at attracting more medical personnel.

The duration of the project is set at 12 months and will be completed by 31 December 2026, with a total budget of 200.000 Euros financed by the Council of Europe.