medical [Archive] - Prison Talk

Sprightly

04-28-2008, 06:42 PM

My brother-n-law sent me this:

Want to help your loved in federal prison?

FAMM members with loved ones in the Federal Bureau of Prisons sometimes call or write us when their loved one experiences a problem. Most commonly, a prisoner needs medical care or has a medical concern, is housed so far from the family that visits are difficult, or received a disputed disciplinary report. Family members want to help but don't know how. Although no answer addresses every circumstance, here is what we generally suggest:

Become an informed advocate.
Identify your loved one's issue(s), getting as much information you can about the problem, and the BOP's applicable policy statement, which can be accessed at http://www.bop.gov (http://www.bop.gov/). For example, if he or she is not receiving medicine, ask: What medicine? Did a doctor prescribe it and if so when? Is the medication on the BOP's approved formulary (available at www.bop.gov//news/PDFs/formulary.pdf (http://www.bop.gov/news/PDFs/formulary.pdf))? What happens if the medicine isn't taken? What steps has your loved one already taken to solve the problem?
You will be a better advocate if you arm yourself with all the facts.

Keep good records.
Keep a notebook dedicated to your loved one and write everything down that you learn, when you learned it and who you learned it from. Ask your loved one to provide you a written description of the problem, including dates and the names of those who may have more information (such as a case manager who promised to look into something, or a doctor at the hospital who promised to write orders for treatment or diagnostic tests) and any steps that have already been taken.

Encourage use of the administrative remedy process to resolve the problem.
Prisoners are expected to try to resolve problems informally through institution staff before bringing them to the attention of the warden or others. A "cop-out" to staff (also known as a BP-8) is also the first step in the administrative remedy process, which prisoners must usually exhaust before seeking relief in the courts. If the informal means fail, that is, the staff member denies the relief sought, a prisoner is expected to use a
BP-9 form, a written request/appeal to the warden. If that request is denied, the prisoner may appeal to the regional office within 20 days using a BP-10 and, if that is denied, then to the general counsel at the central office using a BP-11 within 20 days. All forms should be available through the staff, most often the counselor.

Although time consuming and frustrating in their apparent futility, these steps are important. First, they create a written record that demonstrates the prisoner's seriousness and documents the bureau's responses. Second, they permit the BOP to formally review and potentially resolve the problem.
Third, if the BOP does not solve the problem, BOP officials cannot complain that they were not notified.

To be an informed advocate, it's important that your loved send you a copy of any written request and the resulting response, which you should keep in your notebook. To better understand the administrative remedy process, go to www.bop.gov/DataSource/execute/dsPolicyLoc (http://www.bop.gov/DataSource/execute/dsPolicyLoc) and select P.S. 1330.13.
Obviously, if the situation appears to be an emergency, you can advocate with BOP officials directly even before the prisoner has completed the process.

The D.C. Prisoners' Project of the Washington Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights and Urban Affairs has produced an easy-to-use, fill-in-the-blank guide http://www.washlaw.org/pdf/BOP_Grievance_Guide.pdf (http://www.washlaw.org/pdf/BOP_Grievance_Guide.pdf) and your loved one can use to navigate your way through the BOP administrative system.

Write a letter on the prisoner's behalf.
Armed with the facts and knowing that the prisoner has begun the administrative process, consider writing the warden directly. Your letter should present the facts you gathered, a description of the problem and what might be the solution, and a request that the warden look into the situation.

Be as specific as possible with the facts as you understand them and your request, but don't ask for more than the facts to support. For example, it would not be prudent to request surgical intervention without a definite diagnosis and recommendation for such a procedure. Instead, detail your loved one's problems and the efforts he or she has taken to obtain a diagnosis (including how long, to whom requests were directed, and responses
given) and ask the warden to investigate and/or intervene. Convey your deep concern and your relationship to the loved one (mother, father, etc.) and ask for a written response.

Importantly, if your loved one was being treated by a physician before incarceration, share what information you gather with that doctor and see if he or she is willing to intervene, either by writing a letter or by speaking directly with medical personnel or correctional staff at the institution.

Send copies to other relevant officials.
Check the BOP website for addresses for the warden and the relevant regional and central BOP offices. Send the original to the warden, and copies, if relevant, to the medical director if the institution has one, as well as the regional and central offices. Each region and the central office have a health services administrator. Send a copy to your loved one and keep one in your notebook.

Contact your member of Congress.
First find the name of your U.S. congressional representative. You can go to www.house.gov (http://www.house.gov/), type your zip code at the top of the opening page, and the name of your member will appear. It does not matter if you did not vote for the representative. Congressional offices can be very helpful in asking the BOP to look into a problem. They get answers in writing from the BOP that they will then forward to you.

Then learn the name of the constituent staff person in his or her office
Congressperson and write with your concerns. Follow with a telephone call
asking the representative to look into the problem your loved one is experiencing. Use the format you used in your letter to the warden, assuming you wrote one. Clearly present the problem as you understand it , stating the facts and your concern. Describe the efforts you and your loved one have taken to resolve the problem and ask that your congressional representative investigate the problem.