|
|
| Inmates say prison is making them ill |
| By The Press-Enterprise |
| Published: 08/05/2004 |
|
Inmates at the California Rehabilitation Center in Norco are placing tube socks over showerheads to filter debris out of the water. Others say they have stopped washing their faces to prevent red rashes. Some refuse to drink the tap water or eat food made in the prison's kitchens. In the past few months, about 20 inmates have been diagnosed with Helicobacter pylori, a spiral-shaped bacterium that nestles into the lining of the stomach and causes bloating, vomiting, diarrhea, nausea and bloody or black stools, said Dr. Sarv Grover, chief medical officer at CRC. The minimum- to medium-security prison has been testing for the bacterium for two years and recently sent a memo to its staff and 4,600 male and female inmates to educate them on the illness, he said. The memo states that to protect themselves from H. pylori, they need to have good personal hygiene, eat food that has been properly prepared and drink water from a safe, clean water source. If untreated, H. pylori can lead to ulcers and stomach cancers, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Some inmates, their family members and prison advocates believe the symptoms are caused by contaminated water flowing through the prison's plumbing. Others wonder whether they are the result of unsanitary conditions in the kitchens, bathrooms and dormitories. Prison officials say they test the water twice weekly and insist it is clean. Grover said the inmates' concerns are exaggerated. Petitions are circulating among inmates' families to force the prison to take the necessary steps to avoid contamination altogether. |
MARKETPLACE search vendors | advanced search
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
|
Comments:
No comments have been posted for this article.
Login to let us know what you think