CSC's Response to the Office of the Correctional Investigator report entitled: COVID-19 status update report (June 2020)

Dear Dr. Zinger:

Thank you for your second update on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on federal corrections.

The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) remains vigilant in actively assessing the threat posed by the virus, and is taking all necessary precautions to protect staff and offenders. Needless to say, CSC will continue to follow national, provincial, and local public health advisories as required.

To strengthen our infection prevention and control measures, we have developed in‑person training for staff and contractors in CSC institutions and Community Correctional Centres (CCCs). The training provides staff and contractors the opportunity to view and practice infection prevention and control measures such as proper hand hygiene, and the donning and doffing (putting on and taking off) of Personal Protective Equipment. These are essential measures for preventing the transmission of COVID-19 in our institutions and CCCs.

We continue to expand testing of employees, offenders and their contacts as part of our comprehensive testing strategy to stop the spread of COVID- 19. We have also been offering testing to all inmates who have come into contact with a symptomatic or positive individual.

I am proud to say that, thanks to the efforts of our front-line staff, CSC has significantly limited the spread of the illness within our facilities. Of note, thanks to these efforts, outbreaks at Joliette Institution and the Federal Training Centre were declared over on June 12 and 16, respectively.

As you know, changes to normal institutional activities – including inmate movement, programs, and visits – have been impacted by CSC's efforts to contain the virus. While this was not a decision the Service took lightly, it was necessary to prevent the spread of potentially deadly infections amongst staff and inmates.

CSC plans to soon resume visits in institutions. Sites are currently shaping their plans and undertaking preparations for visits, which will provide a better idea of the exact timing across different regions. We will be implementing new measures to ensure that this is as safe as possible. The plans and protocols for visiting an inmate at a CSC institution during the pandemic have been posted on our website for public viewing.

CSC is also preparing for the return of its registered volunteers. However, this return may not look the same as it did prior to COVID-19. The pandemic has given us an opportunity to reshape the role of our volunteer program by assessing the needs of sites against the interests of volunteers, including looking at greater virtual opportunities. Through collaboration with regions and sites, we are actively reaching out to volunteers to keep them engaged as we shape our new normal.

Below, I would like to take the opportunity to respond to the recommendations in your most recent update.

I recommend that the CSC conduct a COVID-19 epidemiological review before September 2020.

Epidemiological summaries have been conducted for each of the outbreak sites, regular epidemiological analyses are conducted across the country to monitor emerging risk areas, and routine reporting (e.g. testing, hospitalizations, etc.) is ongoing.

I recommend that CSC's 'Shaping the New Normal' plans, priorities and principles, to the fullest extent possible, be made accessible and available to the public, including posting of meeting minutes and Records of Decisions of the various planning and working groups on CSC's public website.

Updates on CSC's Shaping the New Normal plans, priorities, governance, and principles are shared with CSC staff and posted to CSC's public-facing website. Due to the dynamic nature of the pandemic, CSC's plan has left flexibility to adapt to emerging public health guidelines and Treasury Board Secretariat policies. A detailed description is included in annex, for your reference.

To date, all 43 of CSC's institutions have had an Infection Prevention and Control or an Environmental Health review completed. Sites are responding to the recommendations that have been made. The Public Health Agency of Canada is in the final stages of producing a national summary of all institutional IPC assessments and once finalized, will be made public.

Thank you once again for your contributions. I trust that this responds to your concerns.

Sincerely,

Anne Kelly