On 28-29 November 2024, the Council of Europe Pompidou Group, in co-operation with the National Administration of Penitentiaries of the Republic of Moldova, held a two-day training in Chișinău on ethics, healthcare and mitigating the influence of subcultures in the prison environment. The training brought together 34 participants, including medical and non-medical staff from all 17 penitentiary institutions across the country.

This training aligns with Moldova’s recently adopted Action Plan for Aligning Penitentiary Institutions with European Standards and Combating the Criminal Subculture for the years 2024–2027. The training focused on addressing key challenges that undermine effective healthcare delivery. Participants explored critical topics such as reducing stigma against people who use drugs, safeguarding confidentiality in drug treatment programmes and countering the adverse influence of subcultural dynamics on the accessibility of healthcare.

A particular focus was placed on the use of psychoactive substances other than opioids such as New Psychoactive Substances (NPS) in the penitentiary institutions of the Republic of Moldova and the relevance for harm reduction, prevention and treatment services that respond to the current needs of people who use drugs.

The training was built on two key studies carried out by the Pompidou Group in the Republic of Moldova. The first, a cross-sectional study of NPS in prisons, highlighted the high prevalence of NPS users in prisons in the Republic of Moldova and the factors influencing it, while also examining prisoners' and staff's perspectives on drug treatment services and the effectiveness of these programmes. The second study explored the impact of the informal prison subculture on access to medication assisted treatment with methadone and buprenorphine in prisons.

This initiative contributes to the penitentiary reform underway in the Republic of Moldova by fostering a humane, ethical, and effective healthcare system in custodial settings in line with European standards.

For additional information, please refer to the Pompidou Group's publication “Addressing the role of criminal subculture on access to medication assisted treatment with methadone and buprenorphine in Moldovan prisons” (available in both English and Romanian).