Further, there were two nurses (ensuring a nursing presence from Monday to Friday during the day), a health visitor, and two psychologists, as well as an interpreter and an administrator (all full-time). The situation was equally problematic at Fylakio PRDC – for a centre with an operational capacity of 232 places – there was one medical doctor who visited on request and one nurse on weekdays. Moreover, at Kos PRDC, the healthcare provision relied on the healthcare team of Kos CCAC and was composed of a temporary seconded medical doctor from the Armed Forces, two nurses and four social workers (all full-time). A psychologist also attended once a month. In this regard, reference is made to paragraphs 143-144. However, in all centres visited, there was no healthcare personnel present at night and, with the exception of Tavros (Petrou Ralli) and Xanthi PRDCs, on weekends. Further, there were numerous vacancies for the positions of medical doctors and specialists, including psychiatrists, health visitors, psychologists, social workers and interpreters. 87. The above numbers were, except for Tavros (Petrou Ralli) PRDC, totally insufficient to ensure adequate healthcare services to foreign nationals held in pre-removal detention, with dramatic consequences at Corinth PRDC (see paragraph 93). Given the number of detained persons, the length of their detention and the needs of this population, the almost total absence of psychiatric care and insufficient psycho-social assistance and interpretation services remains of serious concern for the CPT. The delegation was informed that efforts had been initiated to recruit additional healthcare staff for all pre-removal centres, but that it had not to date been possible to fill the various vacancies. 88. The CPT recommends that the Greek authorities further increase their efforts to significantly enhance the numbers of healthcare staff in the country’s pre-removal detention centres. As a first step, it is necessary to guarantee the regular presence of a medical doctor and a daily nursing presence, including during weekends, in all centres. In particular, the authorities should: - at Corinth PRDC, recruit an additional medical doctor and three additional nurses; at Tavros (Petrou Ralli) PRDC, recruit one additional nurse; at Paranesti PRDC, increase the medical doctor’s presence to full-time and recruit one additional nurse; at Xanthi PRDC, increase the medical doctor’s presence to at least three days per week and recruit two additional nurses. In a second step, the number of nurses should be further increased to guarantee in all centres a nursing presence 24/7, including at night. This would allow their regular presence inside the detention wings, including for detecting detained persons who require medical attention and directly collecting requests to see the doctor, and would ensure that medication is distributed by nursing staff only. Further, the CPT recommends that the Greek authorities ensure the presence of a part-time psychiatrist or visiting psychiatrist in all centres at least once weekly, and all centres should have at least a full-time health visitor, a psychologist and a social worker. Additional incentives should be put in place to fill vacant positions swiftly, including in remote areas. Reference is also made to the recommendation in paragraph 34 as regards the provision of interpretation services. 89. The healthcare facilities in the different centres visited were overall adequately furnished and equipped. The delegation was particularly impressed by the brand-new and well-equipped dental unit at Paranesti PRDC.38 Most centres had basic emergency medical equipment, such as oxygen, defibrillator, and an ECG machine. However, the defibrillator at Tavros (Petrou Ralli) PRDC had run out of battery and there was no oxygen at Xanthi PRDC. The CPT would like to receive confirmation that these shortcomings have been remedied. 38. The delegation was informed that a second dental unit was operating at Amygdaleza PRDC. 27

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