Boston - On Friday, June 30, the National Commission on Correctional Health Care voted to continue to accredit the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department Nashua Street Jail. The achievement maintains a tradition of health care excellence at the Jail, which has received accreditation by the National Commission on Correctional Health Care consistently since 1990 when the Jail was opened.

The Nashua Street Jail processes over 14,000 individuals annually. Upon detention, each individual receives an initial intake screening to establish a medical record, as well as a mental health evaluation. In 2005, the medical staff handled nearly 25,000 medical visits.

Under Assistant Deputy Superintendent of Health Services Anthony Domegala, the medical staff has been trained in mass disasters, buprenorphine treatment for opiod dependence, hepatitis, smallpox, mental health issues related to corrections, pharmacology, orthopedic injuries, and a number of other diseases and treatments. The Nashua Street Jail also provides onsite x-rays, EKGs, and dialysis.

The National Commission on Correctional Health Care (NCCHC) audits prisons, jails, and juvenile confinement facilities, assessing personnel training, disease prevention, special detainee needs and services, continuity of care, and a number of other health care services. In May of 2006, the Nashua Street Jail was surveyed and found to be in 95% compliance with NCCHC standards. Since the time of the audit, the Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department has taken steps to improve medical services at the Jail and is now in full compliance.

“The NCCHC is nationally recognized as the authority in correctional medical care,” said Sheriff Cabral. “The Suffolk County Jail medical division has been continuously accredited by the NCCHC since 1980. We strive to meet and maintain the standards of good medical care and are proud of this accomplishment.”

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