When nurse Zoila Guipit does her rounds treating inmates at the Hamilton-Wentworth Detention Centre, she often hears they want to continue their care on the outside, but don’t know where to start.
Guipit testified Monday at the inquest into the drug-related deaths of six inmates between 2017 and 2021. She was the last witness called at the weeks-long hearing for the men, who died either in the provincially run jail or in hospital.
The registered nurse said she wishes she could reassure her patients they’ll undoubtedly be connected to community resources — such as for opioid use disorder treatments — when they’re let out, but that doesn’t always happen.
“If you go in to the Hamilton detention centre, you’re getting treated for illnesses and all the disorders that you have, and you’re getting that treatment,” she said. “It would be nice to support that person when they go out into the community … so they don’t necessarily have to come to jail to get those resources.”
She said some of her incarcerated patients have told her they intentionally committed a petty crime in order to access food, water, shelter and health care in jail.
Jason Archer, Paul Debien, Nathaniel Golden, Igor Petrovic, Christopher Sharp and Robert Soberal — ranging in age from 28 to 53 — all died of drug toxicity between 2017 and 2021.
Inquests are mandatory under the Ontario Coroner’s Act for people who die in custody. Among their work, jurors may make non-binding recommendations to prevent future deaths.
‘Fending for themselves’
The goal of this inquest is to prevent future deaths of people who experience opioid use disorder, said Julian Roy, counsel for the inquest.
While Guipit was hired to work at the jail in 2022, after the men died, she was called as a witness to provide a “snapshot” of what’s currently going on at the jail, Roy said.
The detention centre, also known as the Barton jail, detains people awaiting trial or sentencing, or who’ve been sentenced to fewer than two years behind bars.
Guipit said that means some inmates who attend a court date will unexpectedly be let out — if charges are withdrawn, for example — without receiving their discharge plan, and are left “fending for themselves.”
A discharge plan includes health-care information like any upcoming doctor appointments, a few days worth of medication, a treatment plan for substance use and help getting any missing identification, like health-care cards, Guipit said.
Another issue, said Guipit, is that in terms of health care, the jail does not appear to work with community groups beyond physicians and hospitals. That means upon release, people may not know where to find treatment for addictions, harm reduction supplies or other supports.
Roy asked Guipit if she was aware of recommendations from a 2018 inquest after the deaths of eight inmates at the same jail.
One of the recommendations was for the detention centre to work with community groups to ensure inmates are connected to addiction services after they’re released.
But Guipit said that since she began working there in 2022, she hasn’t seen progress on this recommendation, nor was she made aware of this or any other recommendation.
The lawyer representing Ontario government said he did not have any questions for Guipit.