AUSTRIA | Network of Southeast European NPMs meets in Vienna

From 15 – 16 November 2022, the second meeting of this year of the Southeast European Network of National Preventive Mechanisms (SEE NPM Network) was held in Vienna under the chairmanship of the Austrian Ombudsman Board.

Within the framework of this network, 13 NPMs (Albania, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Hungary, Montenegro, Northern Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovenia, as well as Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo) meet regularly to exchange experiences. A representative of the Council of Europe, which supports the network within the framework of the "European NPM Forum", and a representative of the NPM from Georgia also took part.

The topics of the meeting were "Coercive measures in adolescents and adults with mental illness" and "Children and adolescents with mental and physical disabilities". The NPMs presented the situations in the respective countries, addressing the legal basis for placement and the use of coercive measures, as well as the current main challenges. Lack of staff in general and lack of well-trained staff in particular, as well as lack of infrastructure, are the biggest problems.

In the course of the exchange, joint recommendations were developed, which will be published on the website of the SEE NPM Network.

Source: Austrian Ombudsman Board