News item | 13-06-2023 | 2:00 PM
Independent experts will monitor new improvements for the Forensic Psychiatric Center (FPC) Pompe Foundation in Nijmegen. The Judicial Institutions Agency (DJI) appoints these independent experts at the request of Minister Franc Weerwind for Legal Protection. The experts must also ensure that the Pompe Foundation is encouraged to continue working on improvements.
The Justice and Security Inspectorate investigated the escape of two forensic detainees from the FPC in June last year and concluded that the clinic has learned too little from the past. “The escape from such a high-security clinic is unacceptable. I think the fact that the Inspectorate puts its finger on the learning capacity is a hard message. But it does strengthen my ambition to continue working on a sector that learns from incidents and continues to focus on improvements,’ Weerwind writes to the House of Representatives. ‘Learning does not happen by itself and is never finished. It requires critical self-reflection, an open attitude and room for contradiction.’
The clinic has indicated that it will cooperate fully with the appointment of the experts. They are given access to the clinic, can speak to employees at their own discretion and request documentation. The experts will address the clinic solicited and unsolicited about the implementation of the improvement plan and the steps that are being taken. After a year, the minister will assess whether the appointment of the experts will be extended on the basis of the results.
Continuous learning and improvement
The minister expresses his enormous appreciation for the employees in the FPCs who perform difficult, complex and challenging work on a daily basis. ‘Continuing to learn and improve is part of that’, writes Weerwind. The Pompe Foundation is investing heavily in training staff for better forensic acuity. Employees can learn to better assess the risks associated with a client in the event of a disorder and to consider whether freedoms can be offered.
The Pompe Foundation has now installed new fencing, creating a double shell of 5 meters high around the clinic. New technology is being installed to improve supervision. Renovations are also being done so that security guards have better supervision of the site and the access control for the outside area is being adjusted. The minister will inform the House of Representatives before the summer of next year about how the measures at the Pompe Foundation are progressing.