After taking part in the International Forum on Mental Health and the Prison System in the Dominican Republic, Vice President Raquel Peña told reporters that the head of the National Office for Prison Reform had, indeed, delivered to her office a brief on the strategies that will be taken to improve the nation’s prisons, as reported in Listin Diario.
As she was questioned by reporters regarding the small number of psychologists working within the prison system, the Vice President noted that there are budget requisitions that will provide better mental health cars for inmates. She emphasized that President Abinader has said that he wants to provide good care for those persons with mental issues and that are currently inmates in Dominican prisons.
Later on, Roberto Santana, the head of the Prison Reform Office (Onaprep), told reporters that the brief that he had delivered to the Vice-President contained a proposal that would place 200 mental health specialists in the prison system. There are currently 53 psychologists working with inmates. Currently, the 41 jails and prisons within the system house an average of 25,000 inmates, male and female. Of these, 426 have been classified as having mental issues. Of this number, just 125 occupy the five designated areas for this type of inmate. These are located in La Vega, Najayo (men and women), San Pedro de Macoris and La Victoria.
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Listin Diario
13 October 2025