Napier Barracks Protest.
(Andy Aitchison)
Sick asylum seekers living in former military camps are denied access to GPs due to ‘supervision’ by personnel hired by the Interior Ministry who manage the sites, doctors and lawyers warn.
Concerns have been raised about conditions at two Department of Defense (MoD) sites, known as Napier Barracks, in Kent, and Penally Barracks, in Pembrokeshire, since they were repurposed to house asylum seekers last September.
Doctors at charities supporting camp residents said people’s health deteriorated as non-medical personnel in the barracks, employed by contractor of the Home Office Clearsprings Ready Homes, made their own assessment. About whether people with health problems should be referred to a family doctor.
In some cases, staff have decided that the symptoms described are not severe enough for the individual to make such an appointment, leaving people without treatment for weeks, said lawyers representing the people in the barracks.
The Interior Ministry said it was complying with its legal obligations and that all asylum seekers in the camps were registered with a GP. He said Clearsprings did not classify Ready Homes on behalf of the NHS, but instead helped them communicate with health care providers.
The Helen Bamber Foundation told of a case where a survivor of abuse in Penally Barracks suffered a severe one-sided headache for several days and was identified by the charity as an urgent medical evaluation, but camp staff mistakenly categorized it as “not real.”
Jennifer Blair, co-director of legal protection for the Helen Bamber Foundation, said: “Non-medical personnel classify medical problems and it appears that medical problems are being systematically downplayed. The use of clinically untrained personnel as guardians and, indeed, as de facto receptionists of general practitioners, is a violation of the residents’ right to confidentiality. “
Medical charities warned of increasing pressure on the NHS as a result of increased ambulance issues due to deterioration in physical and mental health without treatment.
The numbers obtained by The independent show that in October 2020 there were 19 ambulance calls to Napier barracks, where about 400 people were being held at the time.
Anna Miller, the UK’s chief of policy and advocacy for Doctors of the World, said the lack of access to informed health care “could undermine the Covid-19 vaccination program”.
“GPs also have experience managing the daily health needs of the community and relieving pressure on the rest of the NHS. When people aren’t with a GP, emergency room visits, hospital admissions and ambulance calls increase, and that’s exactly what we’re seeing in the barracks. ”
A November report from the local health council in Wales reveals they were given just two days to prepare medical care for about 200 people who came to Penally, many of whom would suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder and other conditions. have fled conflict or persecution.
“The consultation would have made it clear right away that the Penally site is not a suitable accommodation, especially for men who may have experienced trauma, hardship and separated from their families,” the report said.
When The Independent al The Hywel Dda University Board of Health, approached this week, said that while it expressed “significant concern” when it was made aware of the plans, the Home Office continued to adhere to it.
Medical charities said the local health council in Folkestone also received a notice about two days before the asylum seekers were transferred to the military camp there known as Napier Barracks.
Tom Nunn of Duncan Lewis Solicitors, who represents several asylum seekers in the Penally camp, said many of them had been asked to describe ‘extremely intimate’ health issues to non-medical personnel working in the camp, sometimes through another resident. acting as an interpreter for language problems, to ‘convince’ them that they have access to medical treatment.
“On several occasions, the on-site staff has conducted their own assessment and decided that the symptoms described are not severe enough for the person to make such an appointment, leaving that person without treatment for weeks,” he said.
An asylum seeker, who was in Napier Barracks but was recently transferred to a hotel following the Covid outbreak at the site, said The independent that he had tried to see a doctor because he was coughing up blood, but was referred by camp staff.
The man, who did not want to be identified, said: “In the camp they play with us and send us from one person to another: the manager, the overseers, the nurse. The nurse always said they would get me medicine, but that was just a conversation. ‘
Professor Cornelius Katona, medical director of the Helen Bamber Foundation, said the lack of mental health support meant that underlying trauma-related issues were not addressed and her mental health deteriorated afterward.
He said the evidence showed the situation was’ inhumane and degrading ‘, adding,’ Leaving people in a place where they have a high risk of contracting a life-threatening disease and where they don’t even have enough access to warmth. and water is comparable to torture ”.
The warnings come after a Covid-19 outbreak in Napier Barracks last month, in which more than 120 were infected with the virus.
Medical charities previously warned the site was not safe for Covid, and the Welsh local health council said that The independent that he “had consistently expressed concern about the safety of Covid-19 in the camp and the inadequate isolation facilities and had not received detailed assurances from the Ministry of the Interior”.
Immigration Minister Chris Philp said: “All asylum seekers housed in these locations have full and free access to medical care; each individual is registered with a primary care physician and there is a nurse at each location to assess immediate medical needs.
“We fulfill our legal duty to provide safe accommodation to asylum seekers who would otherwise have been in need, along with three nutritious meals a day, all of which are paid for by the taxpayer.”
An Interior Ministry spokesman added that all asylum seekers who tested positive at the Napier barracks or were in close contact with those who had the virus were forced to isolate themselves, and some were temporarily moved to self-insulated facilities to allow others to isolate themselves more easily.
Clearsprings Ready Homes did not respond to a request for comment.
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