| Organization: | Office of the State Auditor |
|---|---|
| Date published: | November 16, 2023 |
Executive Summary
In accordance with Section 12 of Chapter 11 of the Massachusetts General Laws, the Office of the State Auditor has conducted a performance audit of the Hampshire County Sheriff’s Office (HSO) for the period July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2021.
The purpose of this audit was to determine the following:
- whether HSO complied with and implemented the requirements of Section 932.17(2) of Title 103 of the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR) and HSO’s Policy 4.4.15 (Notification of Death of Employee or Inmate) regarding the deaths of inmates in its custody;1
- whether HSO held quarterly meetings with the health authority2 and reviewed quarterly reports regarding healthcare services for inmates, in accordance with 103 CMR 932.01(3);
- whether HSO provided its inmates with initial medical screenings upon admission and a health assessment within seven days after admission, in accordance with 103 CMR 932.06 and 932.07;
- whether inmates at HSO received medical care after submission of a sick call request form, in accordance with HSO’s Policy 4.3.2 (Medical Requests/Sick Call); and
- whether HSO documented the medical care its inmates received, in accordance with 103 CMR 932.18(2)(h) and (k).
Below is a summary of our finding and recommendation, with links to each page listed.
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Finding 1 |
HSO did not retain sufficient documentation confirming that its inmates received initial medical screenings. |
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Recommendation |
HSO should establish monitoring controls to ensure that it retains sufficient documentation confirming that initial medical screenings were completed upon inmates’ admission to the Hampshire Sheriff’s Office Jail and House of Correction. |
1. HSO informed us that if an inmate is in custody, it means that HSO has the authorization from a court to incarcerate an inmate until the court orders their release. A death in custody is one that occurs during this period of incarceration.
2. According to 103 CMR 932.01, “The health authority may be a physician, health administrator, or health agency whose responsibility is pursuant to a written agreement, contract, or job description.”