The following information is adapted from the Medical Justice website.
Medical Justice offers essential medical help to those held in immigration detention in the UK.
- About 30,000 people a year are held in indeterminate immigration detention in the UK.
- Many detainees have suffered torture or ill treatment, have significant and chronic health problems, and a few may be pregnant, or have been detained for prolonged periods of time without any prospect of release or removal.
- Being detained indefinitely itself causes serious health problems.
- Many independent reports and legal judgements provide evidence of the inadequate healthcare provided in detention centres, especially for those with mental health problems.
Clinicians volunteering for Medical Justice:
- document detainees’ scars of torture to assist in their asylum claims
- challenge medical mistreatment of those held in detention.
These cases provide the evidence for research, publications and campaigns for lasting improvements for detainees.