Joint Circular No. 05/2003/TTLT/BCA-BTC-BYT guides the management, care, treatment, and counseling for persons under temporary detention, prisoners, inmates, and students infected with HIV/AIDS in detention centers, prisons, and educational facilities managed by the Ministry of Public Security.

JOINT CIRCULAR

Guidelines for managing, caring for, treating, and counseling persons under temporary detention, legal entities, prison officers, students infected with HIV/AIDS in temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools

managed by the Ministry of Public Security

The Ministry of Public Security shall manage

____________________________________
 

To effectively manage, care for, treat, and counsel persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS in temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools managed by the Ministry of Public Security in accordance with the law, the joint ministries of Public Security, Finance, and Health hereby provide unified guidelines on certain matters as follows:

I. REGARDING THE MANAGEMENT OF PERSONS UNDER TEMPORARY DETENTION, PRISONERS, PRISON OFFICERS, AND STUDENTS INFECTED WITH HIV/AIDS

1. When conducting health checks to admit individuals into temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools, persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students must clearly report their history of drug use, prostitution, and HIV/AIDS. In cases where there is a high risk of HIV/AIDS transmission (drug injection, prostitution?), blood tests must be conducted to detect HIV. Individuals testing positive for HIV must have separate medical records established to monitor and manage them, and implement necessary measures to prevent and control the spread of HIV/AIDS.

2. For persons under temporary detention, the placement of detention must comply with Clause 1 and Clause 2 of Article 15 of the Regulation on Temporary Detention and Custody (issued together with Decree No. 89/1998/NĐ-CP dated November 7, 1998 of the Government). As for prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS, it is not necessarily required to form separate management, reform, study, and treatment teams.

3. Strictly prohibit spreading false information about the status of HIV/AIDS in temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools; discussing groundless information about the health condition of others with HIV/AIDS. Strictly prohibit persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS from tattooing, engaging in sexual relations (except when meeting with spouse as provided by law), using addictive substances, and illegally injecting drugs in temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools. Strictly prohibit persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS from engaging in actions that cause or threaten to cause the spread of HIV/AIDS to others in any form.

4. When transferring persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS to new detention locations, the relevant files, medical records, and related documents must be handed over to the receiving unit for continued monitoring and management.

When transporting persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS to hospitals or healthcare facilities for examination and treatment, medical staff at temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools must exchange and provide information about the health condition of those being transported to the specialist doctors at the receiving hospitals or healthcare facilities for them to plan management and treatment accordingly.

5. For prisoners and prison officers infected with HIV/AIDS who are granted meetings with spouses within 24 hours as stipulated by law, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, and educational facilities are responsible for advising them on measures to prevent and control the spread of HIV/AIDS.

6. For prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS who progress to the AIDS stage and meet the conditions and criteria set forth by law, the Warden of the Pre-Trial Detention Center, the Warden of the Prison, the Director of the Educational Facility, and the Principal of the Rehabilitation School shall prepare a file to request the competent authority to temporarily suspend the execution of the sentence, temporarily suspend the decision to place in an educational facility or rehabilitation school; and propose a reduction in the term of imprisonment or the term of placement in an educational facility or rehabilitation school according to the provisions of the law for persons suffering from serious illnesses.

For persons under temporary detention infected with HIV/AIDS who progress to the AIDS stage and commit crimes not classified as particularly serious offenses, who lack the ability to commit new crimes, and who do not obstruct investigation, prosecution, or trial, the Head of the Temporary Detention Center, the Warden of the Pre-Trial Detention Center shall prepare a report to the competent investigative, prosecutorial, or judicial body to consider changing the preventive measure: entrusting family members to provide bail as prescribed by law.

Two months before the end of the term of execution of the sentence or the term of placement in an educational facility or rehabilitation school for prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS, the Warden of the Pre-Trial Detention Center, the Warden of the Prison, the Director of the Educational Facility, and the Principal of the Rehabilitation School shall notify the person in charge of the county-level health center where the prisoners, prison officers, and students reside to proactively manage and advise them and their families.

For persons under temporary detention infected with HIV/AIDS who have their preventive measure changed from detention to another preventive measure or are released according to the law, the Head of the Temporary Detention Center, the Warden of the Pre-Trial Detention Center shall notify in writing the person in charge of the county-level health center where the person under temporary detention resides and their family to proactively manage and advise them.

The Head of the Temporary Detention Center, the Warden of the Pre-Trial Detention Center, the Warden of the Prison, the Director of the Educational Facility, and the Principal of the Rehabilitation School shall inform directly managing personnel such as medical staff, educators, investigators, guards, and teachers about persons infected with HIV/AIDS under their jurisdiction.

Staff, soldiers, and workers assigned to work at temporary detention centers, pre-trial detention centers, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools providing oversight, management, care, treatment, and counseling for persons under temporary detention, prisoners, prison officers, and students infected with HIV/AIDS shall not discriminate against them and must strictly keep their information confidential and not discuss it with unauthorized persons.

II. REGARDING THE CARE, TREATMENT, AND COUNSELING OF PERSONS UNDER TEMPORARY DETENTION, PRISONERS, PRISON OFFICERS, AND STUDENTS INFECTED WITH HIV/AIDS

1. Persons under temporary detention, prisoners, inmates, students infected with HIV but not yet showing signs of AIDS shall not be subject to medical treatment regimes, but the detention centers, temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools must regularly monitor their psychological changes and cooperate with the district, town, township, city health centers nearest to them to monitor their health, provide good counseling work, help them understand and prevent transmission to others. The district, town, township, city health centers have the responsibility to cooperate with detention centers, temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools to monitor the health, counsel persons under temporary detention, prisoners, inmates, students infected with HIV/AIDS, and conduct blood tests to detect HIV/AIDS when requested.

2. In cases where persons under temporary detention, prisoners, inmates, students infected with HIV are at the stage showing clinical symptoms of AIDS, they shall be examined and treated at hospitals, clinics of temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools. The diet, medication distribution, and supplementary provisions shall be determined by the health authorities of the temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools according to the disease condition. Medical expenses for treatment shall be disbursed according to Circular Joint No. 12/TTLB dated December 20, 1993 issued by the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Health, and Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs guiding the implementation of food, clothing, accommodation, organization of prevention, and treatment of occupational diseases for prisoners; Circular Joint No. 01/TTLB dated March 2, 1994 issued by the Ministry of Health, Ministry of Public Security, and Ministry of National Defense guiding the implementation of food, clothing, accommodation, daily life activities, organization of epidemic prevention, examination, and treatment for persons under temporary detention; additionally, they shall be disbursed according to Circular Joint No. 51/2002/TTLT-BTC-BYT dated June 3, 2002 issued by the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Health guiding the content and expenditure levels of the National Target Program on preventing certain social diseases, dangerous epidemics, and HIV/AIDS.

Health staff, Heads of Detention Centers, Wardens of Temporary Detention Camps, Wardens of Prisons, Directors of Educational Facilities, Principals of Rehabilitation Schools must strictly comply with professional regulations regarding diagnosis and treatment of HIV/AIDS according to Decision No. 1451/2000/QĐ-BYT dated May 8, 2000 and Decision No. 2557/QĐ dated December 26, 1996 of the Minister of Health, and implement preventive education well to avoid cross-infection and HIV infection when caring for and treating HIV/AIDS patients.

3. In cases where persons under temporary detention, prisoners, inmates, students infected with HIV/AIDS suffer from severe opportunistic infections beyond the treatment capacity of the hospitals, clinics of detention centers, temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools, they shall be transferred to state hospitals or healthcare facilities for treatment. If they suffer from opportunistic infections belonging to a specific specialty, that specialty must accept treatment. Refusal to examine and treat persons infected with HIV/AIDS is strictly prohibited. Examination and treatment costs shall be settled by the detention centers, temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools with the healthcare facilities. These costs shall be covered by the state budget. The detention centers, temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools have the responsibility to protect and guard persons infected with HIV/AIDS under their management who are being treated at healthcare facilities.

4. For temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools with a high number of persons infected with HIV/AIDS, additional hospital beds may be supplemented. The Ministry of Public Security will decide the number of these beds based on actual conditions.

5. When a person under temporary detention, prisoner, inmate, student infected with HIV/AIDS dies, autopsy, sample handling, and burial procedures must comply with the provisions of Decision No. 2557/QĐ-BYT dated December 26, 1996 and current legal regulations applicable to each type of individual. In cases where the cause of death of a person under temporary detention, prisoner, inmate, student infected with HIV/AIDS is clinically and laboratory confirmed to be AIDS, there is no need for forensic medical examination. Burial expenses shall be covered by the state budget, including: one ordinary wooden coffin, one set of new clothes, four meters of shrouding cloth, alcohol or spirits for hygiene purposes during the shrouding process, incense, candles, and a sum equivalent to 100 kilograms of medium-grade white rice (based on local market prices) for burial expenses. Additionally, expenses for flowers, incense, candles for mourning visits, and support for epidemic prevention hygiene work shall be disbursed according to Circular No. 128/1999/TT-BTC dated October 26, 1999 issued by the Ministry of Finance.

6. Heads of Detention Centers, Wardens of Temporary Detention Camps, Wardens of Prisons, Directors of Educational Facilities, Principals of Rehabilitation Schools must regularly organize information, education, and communication measures to help persons under temporary detention, prisoners, inmates, students understand and implement measures to prevent HIV/AIDS transmission, incorporate HIV/AIDS prevention education into regular educational content of detention centers, temporary detention camps, prisons, educational facilities, and rehabilitation schools.

III. IMPLEMENTATION

This Circular Joint shall take effect fifteen days after its date of issuance.

During implementation, if any difficulties are discovered, units and localities shall promptly report to the Ministry of Public Security, Ministry of Finance, and Ministry of Health for supplementary guidance.