AN INMATE'S PERSPECTIVE

Dr. Chris Milburn's Nov. 16 comments about the “criminal element” are extremely hurtful and, in my opinion, discriminatory. All they do is further the evidence that people accused of crimes, not even convicted in some cases, received lacklustre health care.

I personally faced this discrimination at the Burnside jail recently, when a doctor made the comment that, “Your sinuses may be stuffed due to crushing and snorting medications,” adding that “I must take that into account before changing anything on your file.”

Now, after a night to think about this because I didn't want to overreact, I got even angrier — not for simply myself, but for the next patient who may be subject to a comment like that. The insinuation is that because I am in a jail setting, I am likely to crush and snort pills (with no evidence to support this heinous opinion), rather than attributing my stuffed-up sinuses to cold and flu season.

What if that comment were made to a recovering addict? What if it triggered that addict to go on a binge? A statement like that could catastrophically affect rehabilitation for a patient with low self-esteem.

I am polite and pro-social. I do get my medication crushed up on doctor's orders, which then leaves me wondering if I am even getting the right medication. Would a nursing home or family doctor do this? I shouldn't be treated differently because I am incarcerated. That's discrimination, which is a major reason why people reoffend, or why they have a chip on their shoulder.

Perhaps this “criminal element” would be far kinder in Dr. Milburn's eyes if they were treated like everyone else, rather than all being grouped together as terrible people. It could be the difference between that person succeeding in the community or stealing a car. Once again, the treatment of prisoners comes back to the fact that most get released with very poor outlooks, trust issues and feelings of being different. A minority group would call that discrimination.

Neil Tutty, Dartmouth