소년교도소 의료처우 현황 및 발전방안

Abstract

Young offender under the age of 19 who have been sentenced to fixed prison terms are, in principle, held separately from adult inmates. Among the nation's 53 correctional facilities, the juvenile prison that accommodates juvenile inmates is the Gimcheon prison. Therefore, juvenile prisoner with a fixed sentence of imprisonment is now housed in the Gimcheon juvenile prison. However, male adult inmates are also housed in the Gimcheon juvenile prison for overcrowding in general correctional facilities. This paper reviewed in detail the status of medical treatment for boys in Gimcheon juvenile prison, which has not been studied much. For this, a questionnaire survey, in-depth interview with juvenile prisoners and medical staff were performed. Unlike adult inmates, young prisoners had more injuries such as fractures from accidents than from conventional diseases, which led to more orthopedic treatment. In addition, young prisoners assessed that invitational treatment and external hospital treatment could not be treated with as easy as they wanted to. Based on the results, plans for the development of medical treatment in juvenile prison is proposed as follows : First, it is necessary to open a correctional ward in public or private medical institutes. Also invitational treatment and telemedicine are needed to increase opportunities for care for the juvenile prisoners. Second, It is desirable to separate juvenile inmates from adult inmates in the medical ward, to provide floor heating in the cells, and to provide hot water for baths in the vocational training center. Third, it is necessary to secure full-time medical departments and deploy radiation engineers to strengthen the workforce for medical treatment. Fourth, it is required to reduce the medication rate, to implement anti-smoking and anti-alcohloism programs, to expand exercise opportunities and to provide patient meals. The medical treatment of correctional facilities reflects the welfare level of the society. It is hoped that medical treatment can be carried out at the Gimcheon juvenile prison, the only juvenile prison in Korea, considering the characteristics of juvenile inmates.