NEW METHADONE PROCEDURES IN PLACE, INQUIRY TOLD

How could the death of a 26-year-old prisoner, who took a lethal dose
of methadone that had been smuggled out of the jail health unit, have
been prevented?

That's one of the many questions a provincial court judge will ponder
after the one-day fatality inquiry into the death of Dennis Allan
Karey, who was found unresponsive by his cellmate at the Lethbridge
Correctional Centre on the morning of April 30, 2005.

The court heard Wednesday from several witnesses who were working at
the facility on the day in question.

During the hourly routine checks conducted by staff the previous
night, everything appeared to be normal in cell 29 in Unit 6. Andre
Carrier was working as a human resource worker when he let prisoner
Jeffrey Arishenkoff out of his cell in the morning to receive his
daily dose of methadone.

Arishenkoff was one of three inmates taking the synthetic narcotic
used to treat addiction to drugs such as heroin, morphine and
codeine, by suppressing withdrawal symptoms and reducing cravings.
The liquid drug slows down the central nervous system and can be
fatal to a person who takes it that doesn't have an addiction to
drugs containing opium.

According to Carrier, when Arishenkoff returned to his cell he began
yelling seconds later that his cellmate was cold and blue.

When Carrier went to check on the situation himself, he saw Karey
lying on his stomach with his blue face tilted towards the door,
prompting him to contact the jail health unit. It was too late,
however, and Karey was pronounced dead at the scene.

Nearly two years later, Arishenkoff pleaded guilty to manslaughter
and was sentenced to three years behind bars. It was soon learned
that on at least one occasion Arishenkoff had hidden a small cup in
his overalls when he went to retrieve his dose from the prison health
unit. He created a distraction by dropping the lid of the methadone
container and while bending down to pick it up, poured some of the
drug into the cup without a nurse seeing him do so.

Inmates told investigators the night before Karey died he looked
tired, had a red, blotchy face and appeared to be "under the
influence of something."

Shortly after Karey's death, procedures as to how inmates receive
their methadone treatment were changed at the local facility to
prevent inmates from smuggling the drug out of the jail health unit.
Now an inmate is accompanied by an officer to the health unit and is
patted down before taking the methadone. The inmate is watched
consuming the drug, patted down again, then placed alone in a dry
cell and observed for 30 minutes before being patted down again and
taken back to their cell.

Even though there hasn't been any problems since the new procedures
were put into place, a common theme emerged from the two nurses
working at the health unit who took the stand - banning the methadone
treatment program from prisons altogether to prevent such incidents
from ever happening in the first place.

"It's a heavy duty medication we would prefer not to give," said
Elsie Friesen, a nurse at the health unit, who noted there are
inconsistencies among corrections centres on how the drug is given.
"We help the inmates with withdrawal from other medications and alcohol."

The concentration of a 120-millilitre bottle of methadone varies
among inmates. Most concentrations are from 80 to 140 milligrams with
some cases as high as 250 milligrams. Arishenkoff was on 190
milligrams - one of the highest dosages given at the facility.

Nurses at the health unit are not allowed to prescribe the drug, but
rather continue the treatment to inmates who already have
prescriptions from outside of jail.

Public fatality inquires establish the cause, manner, time and other
circumstances of death. They do not determine legal responsibility
but may offer recommendations to prevent future deaths. A final
report by the judge on the inquiry will be released at a later date.