HMP inmates denied medical attention, rehab programs due to staff shortages, documents reveal

A collection of emails about staff shortages at Newfoundland and Labrador’s largest corrections facility reveals the far-ranging chaos caused by the lack of officers to guard over inmates, including allegations of denied medical attention and cancelled rehabilitation and educational programs. 

CBC News obtained those emails, dating back nearly two years, through an access-to-information request. They paint a picture of a prison that’s struggling to remain operational — and in some cases, isn’t.

Severe shortages of guards at Her Majesty’s Penitentiary in St. John’s have prompted prison-wide lockdowns for days on end, repeatedly, in recent years.

In one email about those lockdowns, sent in July to Supt. Dan Chafe, one HMP supervisor said 14 of the prison’s 29 guards weren’t able to work, leaving nearly half of the necessary position unfilled. Eleven of those 14 were on sick leave that day, the supervisor said.

The documents show officials noting extended periods of leave among guards, with one email identifying 22 guards as having “significant leave usage.”

The ongoing problem of daily absences is directly affecting inmates. In another email, sent in February to Justice Minister John Hogan, a non-profit worker said she had received several phone calls from inmates claiming they were being denied medical attention because of them.

She said one inmate had had a broken wrist for six weeks. 

“The bone is literally sticking out,” she wrote.

That complaint was forwarded to the Justice Department’s assistant deputy minister, Lorelei Roberts, who said trailers were brought on-site to help with space issues. Roberts’s response didn’t address why inmates were allegedly being denied care. 

Roberts also said in an email to the senior director of corrections health services, Krista Wade, that programming is often cancelled to allow guards to escort inmates to medical appointments. 

Wade noted dental appointments are also on the chopping block when the prison is short-staffed.

“These are frequently cancelled due to staffing issues at HMP,” she wrote in an email on Feb. 21.

Roberts explained in a follow-up email that staff shortages are caused by a number of things, including officers “providing inmate transportation, sick calls, inmate compatibility issues, and hospitalizations, which require 24/7 correctional officer coverage.” 

“Medical services are prioritized by the correctional officers, [and] programming is often cancelled to allow for staffing allotments to accommodate medical appointments,” wrote Roberts.

Programming cancelled

The lack of guards is also affecting how often inmates can complete programming.

Workers with Alcoholics Anonymous and the John Howard Society, an inmate advocacy group, have also complained about being turned away at the door due to lockdowns.

“Volunteers at HMP have experienced a lot of cancellations of meetings over the past several months,” said Susan Green, the Justice Department’s provincial manager of institutional programs, in an email sent in October 2023. 

Green also noted the prison’s library often remains inaccessible to inmates when under lockdown.

She also says there have been disruptions to education services, including adult basic education, literacy skills and GED preparation support, caused by a lack of guards and the last contractual teacher’s unexpected leave of absence.

The emails show inmates also complained about dirty laundry, with several inmates saying they’d gone two weeks without clean clothes this summer because of staff shortages.

Lockdowns have also meant a lack of recreation at the facility. Earlier this year, a Justice Department spokesperson told CBC News inmates had participated in outdoor recreation a total of eight times between June and September.

The emails note steps the department has taken to relieve pressure on the prison roster, acknowledging last December that shortages have disrupted “the delivery of the programs designed to reduce recidivism and promote recovery.”

It explains efforts officials made before 2024 to address the shortages, which includes hiring 44 correctional officers.

They also detail plans to improve “staff morale” and enhance health and safety measures. Officials discussed offering incentives for overtime, implementing a one-time retention bonus and establishing a wellness committee, as well as procuring “adjustable ergonomic seating for staff within all control rooms of HMP.”

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