B.C. prisoners with complex mental illness aren’t getting necessary treatment, report says

B.C. prisoners with complex mental illnesses aren’t getting the psychiatric treatment they need, and are being kept in jail longer than required, because the province has only one 190-bed hospital for these high-risk patients, according to a scathing new report.

The British Columbia Review Board, which is in charge of assessing the condition of these patients, released its annual report for the 2024 fiscal year Wednesday. The opening message of chair Brenda Edwards outlined how chronic underfunding has brought the forensic health care system to a breaking point.

“In my view, these shortages put the safety of the public and the rights of individuals at risk,” she wrote in the report, which was shared with provincial Attorney-General Niki Sharma last week.