PATCHES EXPOSE JAIL DRUGS

MINIMUM-SECURITY prisoners at Nyandi women's prison will have to wear
sweat patches which will reveal whether they have been taking drugs.

The patches, worn on the arm or back like nicotine patches, are part
of a Ministry of Justice push to make the Bentley jail drug-free.

The patches, which prisoners will wear for about a week at a time,
will be sent away for analysis and reports will reveal any drugs found.

The centre, which was reopened to cope with a big increase in female
prisoners at Bandyup Prison, usually has 50 occupants with only three
to six months of their sentences to serve.

Assistant superintendent Christine Ginbey, in charge of Nyandi, said
yesterday the trial of the drug-free prison would begin when the
patches arrived in the next few days.

She said the drug-free concept at Nyandi began two years ago. Even
sleeping tablets are banned.

In the seven months to May, only two prisoners tested positive to
drugs - one for cannabis, the other for amphetamines.

It was easy for the prisoners to get drugs or alcohol because most
were released to do community work, work experience or rehabilitation
programs.

Ms Ginbey said most of the prisoners supported the drug-free concept
and prison staff often got information about suspected drug use from
other prisoners.

She said Nyandi's programs had been a big success with many women
getting jobs with agencies such as the Department of Conservation and
Land Management after doing community work for the
organisation.

Ms Ginbey said the patches were better than urine tests, which were
carried out randomly once a month without proper privacy.

The patches were just as accurate. Prisoners also are breathalysed for
alcohol. One drug that is allowed is the opiate-blocker naltrexone. It
helps ease the chance of former heroin users returning to their old
habits.

The proposed Pyrton prison in Bassendean will replace Nyandi and
eventually the drug-free unit will operate from there.

But the State Government has to overcome one hurdle - Federal Heritage
Minister Robert Hill is deciding whether the State has breached
Aboriginal heritage laws by approving the prison.

Escapes from Nyandi, and even bad behaviour, can result in prisoners
being returned to Bandyup. Three Nyandi prisoners escaped this year.