Criminals who have been sentenced to forensic psychiatric care due to serious mental disorders are in some cases released while waiting for a place in a clinic.
Previously, this involved "a handful" of so-called freeloaders.
But now it's up to about twenty. There haven't been that many before, says Mikael Malm, administrator at the department for health and social care at SKR.
This is despite the fact that the Forensic Psychiatric Care Act requires that care be commenced without delay once the verdict has become final.
The law requires prompt care
Almost all of the freeloaders - 21 people in mid-February - are from Region Skåne, which the newspaper Norra Skåne has previously written about.
The health care system has no information about what crimes they have committed. It is the court that decides whether a convicted person can be released while waiting for a place to receive care.
Bo Knutsson, head of forensic psychiatry in Skåne, says that those sentenced to forensic psychiatric care are not necessarily serious perpetrators of violence.
It may be a relatively minor crime, but it is repeated in a way that is related to having a serious mental disorder, he continues.
Those who are deemed to pose a risk are allowed to remain in detention, but even there the pressure is heavy due to the Prison and Probation Service's lack of space. These people are prioritized as soon as a bed becomes available.
No relief
The health clinics in Skåne have an occupancy rate of 112 percent, which means that extra beds have been added and that a patient may need to share a room with someone who is currently on leave.
"You want to avoid having multiple patients in the same room at the same time. It increases the risk of threats and violence, the work environment worsens and treatment times are likely to be longer," says Knutsson.
The situation is similar in most Swedish regions. The crisis has been going on for several years and hundreds of new care places are being planned and built.
Despite this, Mikael Malm sees no improvement in the future, as the number of judges has increased in recent years, while the long treatment times mean that places rarely become available.
SKR wants the state to take greater responsibility, especially financially, since it is the judicial system and not the regions that control the influx into forensic psychiatry.
This issue is on the agenda in virtually all regions, says Malm.
Anyone who suffers from a serious mental disorder and commits a crime shall be sentenced to forensic psychiatric care. For most people sentenced to forensic psychiatric care, a so-called special discharge assessment (SUP) is also ordered.
SUP means that the administrative court, not the chief medical officer, decides when a patient is discharged. In such cases, the court must make a comprehensive assessment of the person's situation, taking into account in particular the risk of recidivism.
Today there are 1,422 permanent inpatient beds, an increase of 90 beds since last year. SKR has previously estimated that over 2,000 permanent inpatient beds will be needed by 2035.
