Thirty officers of the Bahamas Department of Correctional Services (BDOCS) have been certified in mental health recognition and response.
At a graduation ceremony held at the facility Acting Commissioner Doan Cleare said there was no choice but to seek help in dealing with their mentally ill residents. Cleare said, “right now we’re only concerned about maximum and the remand center with mental health challenges but its now spreading now to medium security.”
The Minister of National Security, the Hon. Wayne Munroe was also in attendance at the event where 30 officers received certifications. In his remarks he said, “it does trouble me every time Commissioner Cleare or Deputy Commissioner Murray report to me that another mentally challenged resident has been murdered in this facility usually. We must stop that bleeding and this is the first step.”
Plans are in the works for more BDOCS officers to be trained and to ensure that officers of the Royal Bahamas Police and Defense Forces receive the same training.
