CHNP's closed ward unsatisfactory, says ombudsman

(CS) Ombudsman Marc Fischbach has suggested that there were some human rights breaches at the closed ward of Ettelbrück's neuro-psychiatric hospital CHNP.

Fischbach had examined the institution as an external inspector of closed wards.

He criticised that patients in the BU6 ward, on the sixth floor of one of the buildings, were kept in untenable conditions.

Patients do not have access to a terrace or courtyard, meaning that those with serious psychological impairments cannot go out in the fresh air to walk a few paces. Not even the windows can be opened.

The tall building of the CHNP complex was not suited for the care of psychiatric patients, Fischbach said in his report, especially as some of them spend eight to ten weeks or even a year in the facility.

In an interview with DNR Fischbach said that the right to walk outside was given to prisoners, and that psychiatric patients also needed to be given this right.

He has called for the refurbishment of several courtyards to meet security requirements for the patients.

On the whole, however, the building was in good condition with good hygiene standards.

The closed BU6 ward accommodates patients with serious mental health issues who have committed crimes, but were pronounced incapable of assuming responsibility for their actions. Detainees at Schrassig prison who have mental health disorders are also brought to the Ettelbrück facility, in cases of the need for short-term 24/7 supervision.