§ Mr. Ogdenasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of viral hepatitis have been identified within the prison population during each of the past 10 years.
§ Mr. MayhewThis information is not collected centrally.
§ Mr. Ogdenasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what action is taken in regard to proven cases of viral hepatitis in Her Majesty's prisons; and what measures are taken in order to draw these cases to the attention of staff working within prison establishments;
(2) what methods are in use in Her Majesty's prisons for the detection, identification and treatment of viral hepatitis;
(3) whether the prison department lays down a general policy in regard to the isolation and treatment of cases of viral hepatitis in prisons; and to what extent individual institutions may determine their own policy in regard to such cases.
§ Mr. MayhewViral hepatitis in the acute phase can normally be detected by medical examination but the diagnosis can be confirmed only by laboratory tests. The treatment of a prisoner who is found to be suffering from306W viral hepatitis is a matter for the professional judgment of the prison medical officer who has complete clinical freedom. The standard methods of treating the disease are isolation, bed rest and barrier nursing. There is no known drug treatment. The medical officer will decide, in the light of the circumstances, what measures need be taken to establish whether there is a possibility that infection has passed to others in the establishment and what further precautions are necessary. Members of staff who are identified as having been in close contact with a person suffering from the disease are normally advised to consult their general practitioner.
§ Mr. Ogdenasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the prison department has carried out any survey on the incidence in prisons of viral hepatitis during the period 1972 to 1982; and if he will publish the results.
§ Mr. MayhewNo such survey has been undertaken.
§ Mr. Ogdenasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what training is afforded to prison staff in the handling of, and the possible consequences of handling, inmates with viral hepatitis.
§ Mr. MayhewPrison medical officers are fully qualified medical practitioners. Prison hospital officers receive specific instructions about viral hepatitis which include the appropriate nursing care and the necessary precautions against the spread of the disease.
§ Mr. Ogdenasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what provisions are made by the prison department to provide protective clothing, where the main population of a prison absorbs inmates suffering from, or carriers of, viral hepatitis.
§ Mr. MayhewAppropriate protective clothing is available in the hospital wing of every prison department establishment.