Summary
Mr C, who is a prisoner, complained about the management of his sleep disorder by the prison health centre team. He was unhappy that his zopiclone (a drug used to treat sleeping problems) prescription was reduced and stopped. In addition, Mr C said that an alternative drug he was given did not agree with him as he was also on methadone (a drug substitute for heroin).
After taking independent advice from one of our medical advisers, we found that the health centre team acted reasonably in reducing Mr C's zopiclone, as it is a drug that is licensed for short term use of insomnia. Mr C was aware of this at the time it was first prescribed. There was also evidence to show that Mr C was reviewed appropriately and told of the need to reduce the zopiclone prescription on more than three occasions.
Related reading
View Decision Report 201300723 as a PDF (11 KB) Updated: March 13, 2018