Enhancing healthcare provision in Georgia's penitentiary system

The project aims to protect the human rights of prisoners and probationers by improving the quality of the access, provision and organisation of mental health and substance use-related services, as well as other relevant therapeutic and rehabilitation activities.

The project will assist national authorities in further developing appropriate policies and strengthening capacities to ensure equivalence and continuity of healthcare for offenders, in line with Council of Europe standards and best practices. Updated standards and guidance will include gender-sensitive, non-discriminatory, patient-oriented and evidence-based strategies.

WHAT DO WE EXPECT TO ACHIEVE?

Strengthened policy, regulatory and strategic frameworks for the provision and organisation of mental health care services;
Improved tools and methodologies for national human rights bodies who monitor the quality of the provision of mental healthcare provision in penitentiary and probation systems;
Increased capacity and skills of the management, operational and medical staff of penitentiary and probation systems, as well as the independent monitoring staff.

HOW WILL THE PROJECT WORK?

A combination of needs assessments, expert advice, round tables, working groups and experts’ meetings, and tailor-made training courses will serve to achieve the goal of the project.

The project team works closely with partners, i.e. the Ministry of Justice of Georgia, the Public Defender's Office/National Preventive Mechanism and relevant civil society organisations. The project facilitates dialogue between relevant stakeholders to ensure a joint national approach to managing mental healthcare and well-being of offenders. It will support the creation of a multi-disciplinary and holistic methods which consider all situations of vulnerability such as those concerning women, juveniles, persons with disabilities, people who use drugs and LGTBQI people.

The Project is part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Georgia (2020-2023) and its total budget is 600 000 Euros.

The project started on 1st of April 2022 and runs until the end of December 2023.

The project builds on the achievements of the European Union - Council of Europe joint project “Human Rights and Healthcare in Prisons and Other Closed Institutions in Georgia” (2010-2017), and the previous projects funded by voluntary contributions, namely: the projects on “Improving Mental Health Care of Persons Detained in Georgia” (2018-2019) and “Enhancement of Human Rights and Health-Care Support to Penitentiary System” (2019-2022).

Project documentation

Useful information

Tbilisi office Website

Project news

Back Suicide prevention among different populations: improving inter-agency cooperation in Georgia

Nino LAPACHI

Modified 2 Years ago.

@ Council of Europe

An Inter-Agency Roundtable on Suicide Prevention among high-risk population groups took place in Tbilisi on 20 December 2023. Over 40 representatives from various national agencies, including the Ministry of Justice (Special Penitentiary Service, National Probation Agency, Juvenile Referral Centre), Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Office of Resource Officers of Educational Institutions, Agency for State Care and Assistance for the Victims of Human Trafficking, and Personal Data Protection Service, gathered to discuss the critical issue of suicide prevention and explore potential cooperation.

Georgia’s penitentiary and probation system, nationally recognised for its efforts in suicide prevention, shared invaluable insights and lessons learned, highlighting the crucial importance of inter-agency cooperation. During the Roundtable, participants actively engaged in in-depth discussions on the adoption of international best practices. Emphasis was placed on ensuring seamless continuation of suicide prevention programmes post-release and throughout the probation period, also on addressing privacy and data protection, improving instruments of suicide risk screening, and addressing staff well-being and their training needs.

Looking ahead, the Council of Europe reiterated its commitment to supporting the state agencies of Georgia working with prisoners and former prisoners, with a focus on rehabilitation, social reintegration, and suicide prevention. The event marked a significant step forward in fostering collaboration and sharing best practices on a national scale.

This activity was conducted under the auspices of the Council of Europe project “Enhancing Healthcare Provision in Georgia’s Penitentiary System”, which is a part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Georgia 2020-2023.

Georgia 20 December 2023