- 30 4. Issues affecting all police and border guard stations: food and hygiene, medical care and staffing 48. The arrangements as regards the provision of food remained inadequate in many of the establishments visited. The CPT has already made it clear that the current system of providing a daily allowance of Euro 5.87 does not enable detained persons to purchase the necessary nutrition (and other products) required during prolonged periods of detention, as purchases are often made at commercial prices from restaurants. Indeed, it only suffices to buy a couple of sandwiches and some water. In those police and border guard stations where food is provided from the police canteen or by a caterer twice a day, the situation is better, although more vegetables and fruit could be provided. All persons detained for longer than a few days should be provided with one hot meal a day. As regards hygiene, in all the police and border guard facilities visited, detained persons complained about the challenge of keeping themselves clean; soap and shampoo were only provided in limited quantities and other hygienic items, such as toothpaste and toilet paper, had to be bought or obtained from those with money. The lack of hot water meant that the limited clothes possessed by detainees could not be properly washed, thereby further compromising personal hygiene, in particular for those held for prolonged periods. There was also a clear lack of cleaning products. 49. The CPT has long advocated the necessity to have effective access to medical care for persons detained in police and border guard stations. It is pleased to note that the Greek authorities have recognised the need to have a daily medical presence in certain establishments that the Committee has criticised in the past, notably at the Feres and Tychero stations. There is a similar need at large police establishments such as Larissa Police Station, the Metagogon (Transfer) Centre in Thessaloniki and Kypseli and Omonia Police Stations in Athens. The delegation met many persons with skin infections and the cramped and unhygienic conditions in these places are conducive to spreading disease. The fact that in some facilities police officers wore masks and gloves when interacting with detainees was symptomatic of the perceived public health concerns and yet no action was taken to ensure that such concerns were allayed. 50. As regards the staffing of the detention areas in police and border guard stations, the CPT continues to advocate for the establishment of posts of specialised custodial staff with full responsibility for detained persons, including medical and legal oversight. In order to be fully effective, such custodial officers should have both the authority and the responsibility to verify whether basic rights of detained persons, such as notification of deprivation of liberty, access to a lawyer, etc., have been respected, and to take appropriate action if this is not the case. The CPT also wishes to highlight that many police officers with whom its delegation met expressed their indignation at the current situation of detaining so many persons in totally unsuitable conditions for prolonged periods of time. In a number of instances, formal complaints had been made to the hierarchy of the Hellenic Police detailing the deficiencies in the detention areas. Further, it was evident that some police officers made a real effort to interact and provide humane social contact with detainees, attempting to alleviate the difficult conditions of detention as far as possible. In those establishments where this was evident, the detainees were the first to praise the police officers. Taking action to improve the conditions of detention for detained persons will also have a positive impact on working conditions for police officers.