The Project will assist the national authorities in improving healthcare in prisons and in particular the provision of mental healthcare to inmates. The project will also assist the continuation of the suicide prevention programmes and will increase professional capacities of the penitentiary system staff with a focus on special trainings for the psychologists and medical personnel employed in the system, it will also support capacity building of the staff of National Preventive Mechanism and Public Defender’s Office, and raise awareness of inmates on healthcare issue and access to relevant services.

The goal will be achieved through assistance aimed at:

(a) improving the access of inmates to quality psychiatric care, treatment, and rehabilitation programmes; and

(b) establishing an effective internal control mechanism on the provision of healthcare in prisons.

• An improved regulatory and policy framework for dealing with persons with mental disorders and drug-addiction in prisons;
• Enhanced operational procedures for staff dealing with prisoners in need of mental healthcare;
• A draft regulatory framework to ensure quality monitoring and control mechanisms for healthcare delivery in prisons, finalized and submitted to the authorities;
• The capacity of staff in charge of the healthcare services in prisons strengthened;
• An increased awareness of inmates on available healthcare programmes.

Partners: Ministry of Justice of Georgia; Public Defender's Office; National Preventive Mechanism; relevant civil society organisations.

End beneficiaries: inmates, probationers, society at large. 

The Project builds on the results of European Union - Council of Europe Joint Programme on “Human Rights and Healthcare in Prisons and Other Closed Institutions in Georgia” (2010-2017), and the project on “Improving Mental Health Care of Persons Detained in Georgia” (2018-2019).

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

The total budget of the Project is 600 000 Euros.

The Project is part of the Council of Europe Action Plan for Georgia.

The project runs until the end of November 2021.