21 November 2003
Prison sets new benchmark with first health accreditation
The privately managed Auckland Central Remand Prison (ACRP) has become the first prison in the country to receive
Quality Health New Zealand Accreditation.
Legislation due in October 2004 will require all health service providers to achieve a Health Certification, though
prisons will be exempted from the legislation.
"The accreditation ACRP has just achieved exceeds the standards that health providers will soon need to achieve for
their certificate," said ACRP General Manager Dom Karauria.
"Once again ACRP has set the standard for service delivery in New Zealand prisons and has laid down the challenge for
all other prisons."
Mr Karauria said the accreditation process was thorough and robust, focusing on all aspects of the prison pertaining to
health service delivery, including the management and communications processes, mental and primary health service
delivery, screening processes and cultural sensitivity.
"The staff and management at ACRP are very proud of this accreditation. It reflects our commitment to excellence in all
areas and goes to reinforce the huge progress that has been made at ACRP across all areas," he said.
"Under the ACRP management contract we were not required to achieve this accreditation. We chose to do so because
excellence in this area directly benefits the people we care for and anything less than the very best is just not good
enough."
Mr Karauria said ACRP had pioneered a never before seen approach to health delivery in a New Zealand prison, and the
outstanding results were a tribute to fresh new ideas, a brand new approach and a committed and united staff.
He said the challenge now was for all other New Zealand prisons to start achieving similar results or to explain why
they would not.
"ACRP has achieved this accreditation because 'good enough' is not good enough for us. Only when prisons in this country
start to exceed their minimum requirements will they start to succeed in genuinely rehabilitating and reintegrating our
people."
ENDS