(MENAFN- Arab Times) KUWAIT CITY Nov 24 (KUNA): Participants in a regional symposium held here on Monday have agreed on the distinguished medical services offered to detainees in Kuwait. They said the country is leading in the field on the regional level. Kuwait is the only Arab country where patient prisoners are treated by the Ministry of Health and not the Interior Ministry according to the first regional Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC)- ICRC symposium held here on Monday under 'Healthcare in Detention.' The Ministry of Health represented by the Police Health Affairs Department pays prior attention to healthcare in detention places Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for Private Services Dr. Mohammad Al- Khashti told the gathering.
He added that the Central Prison Hospital and prison clinics offer medical services to inmates at once in case of need. Al-Khashti noted that each Kuwaiti prison has a special ward for new inmates under the supervision of a medical team. Inmates are referred to big public hospitals in case needed services are not available in prison clinics.
According to the Health Ministry official a nutrition specialist supervises preparation of meals offered to inmates. Services are equally offered to all prisoners Al- Khashti stressed. For his part the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been making persistent efforts over the past months to organize that major event head of ICRC regional delegation for GCC countries Gerard Patrick Peytrignet told the gathering. He lauded the support by the Ministry of Health and the Interior in that respect.
Peytrignet underscored the importance of health care at detention centers which includes nutrition cleanliness water and health and mental care. He said that the ICRC personnel pay visits to detention places in line with the relevant cooperation agreements especially in Kuwait Bahrain and Qatar referring to UN recommendations that prisoners' health care is a Ministry of Health responsibility.
Assistant Undersecretary for Rehabilitation Institutes and Provisions Implementation Maj.Gen. Khaled Al-Deen told the event that Kuwait is committed to the international laws conventions protocols and recommendations on human rights. Providing due healthcare in detention is integral to prisoners' rights he stressed. Al-Deen emphasized the high level of medical services offered to inmates in the GCC countries. ICRC official for health care in detention Raed Abu Rabei stressed that Kuwait is leading in health care in detention where the responsibility of inmates medical services ;lies on the Health rather than the Interior Ministry.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.