SALT LAKE CITY — Issues transferring to a brand new medical information system have precipitated hundreds of Utah State Jail inmates to go with out medicines, directors instructed households on Sunday.
“It corrupted a bunch of information that came visiting,” defined Steve Turley, the director of scientific providers for the Utah Division of Corrections. “Sure medicines didn’t migrate over. Some medicines have been quadrupled.”
Turley and UDC director Brian Nielson spoke to households by Zoom on Sunday. In a single anecdote describing the extent of the issue, Turley stated the software program “confirmed most inmates to be pregnant.”
“Clearly, that’s not the case,” he clarified.
The software program migration started Aug. 1. That was about two weeks after inmates moved out of the previous jail in Draper and into the brand new penitentiary in western Salt Lake Metropolis.
“The transition has gone not in addition to we had hoped,” Nielson stated.
“It didn’t go as deliberate, and we take accountability for that,” Turley stated.
“We’re working to repair this disaster,” he added.
The briefing got here after a Thursday story from FOX 13 Information. Moreover medicine delays, households have complained of jail workers not treating illnesses, a scarcity of telephones and out of doors time on the new jail, and even mosquitos from adjoining wetlands biting the inmates once they do go open air.
READ: Households elevate severe issues six weeks into new $1 billion state jail
Jail workers on Sunday solely addressed the medicine issues and instructed households that their incarcerated family members wanted to submit written requests in the event that they need to be seen by a doctor. Households have complained their inmates have been doing so.
“So, I imagine they did not give us any solutions,” stated Shelly Munster, whose husband just lately arrived on the new jail. “I imagine they received on [Zoom] and stated as little as they might.”
Munster stated her husband went about two weeks with out medicines for hypertension and psychological well being wants, however that issues have gone past prescriptions.
“He got here up with an an infection in his leg,” Munster stated. “It took them 11 days from the day it began for him to be seen.”
Wendy Parmley, the director of medical and psychological well being coverage for Utah Prisoner Advocate Community, stated the lacking prescriptions can influence security within the jail.
“A person now listening to voices and positioned in max (safety) as a result of he did not obtain and nonetheless could not have obtained his psychological well being medicines, for instance,” she stated.
Parmley stated directors mustn’t have tried to implement a software program change whereas transitioning to a brand new jail — a minimum of not with out redundant information.
“However there actually was a glitch within the management and the rollout,” Parmley stated.
Nielson on Sunday stated workers anticipated the information migration to work. Staff did print many paperwork and manually enter info, however that hasn’t been environment friendly, he added.
Parmley needs the division to determine a command middle to coordinate the writing of recent prescriptions and ship the medicines. Then she needs the division to make use of contracts it already has with outdoors physicians and different well being employees to enhance jail workers.
“You actually are going to avoid wasting {dollars} spending slightly bit of cash proper this minute to make it proper,” she stated.
Turley stated short-term pharmacy workers are arriving Monday. What had been 15,000 excellent prescriptions has already been whittled to 4,000, he stated.
https://www.fox13now.com/information/fox-13-investigates/fox-13-investigates-new-prison-in-crisis-as-software-keeping-medication-from-inmates