Damon contacted our office with a complaint that his continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine did not accompany him on a transfer to a federal correctional facility. He explained that despite receiving assurances from Prince George Regional Correctional Centre (PGRCC) staff that it would accompany him, when he reached the transitory correctional centre, the machine was not provided to him. As a result, Damon spent multiple nights without it suffering from the effects of severe sleep apnea.

During our investigation PGRCC explained that it didn’t receive instruction from healthcare staff to ensure that the CPAP machine accompany Damon, and therefore treated the device as it would with any other personal property by forwarding it to Damon’s final destination.

We questioned PGRCC’s understanding of the need for individuals prescribed a CPAP machine to use it nightly and whether it had any procedures in place to assess whether prescribed medical equipment should accompany an inmate during a transfer. In response, PGRCC acknowledged that it did not have a procedure in place and committed to creating one, which they did.

With the implementation of this procedure, inmates prescribed a CPAP machine or other medical equipment will have that equipment accompany them when transferred out of PGRCC.