The double killer is probably sentenced to care - that's how it works in forensic psychology

If a person commits a crime in Sweden under the influence of a serious mental disorder, the person can be sentenced to forensic psychiatric care instead of imprisonment.

Annually, about 300 people are transferred to forensic psychiatric care.

And forensic psychiatric care differs in several ways compared to a prison sentence.

In contrast to what it is like in a prison sentence, for example, patients are not locked in their rooms, except in very specific cases - and then always for a limited time.

- There are higher demands on people who receive forensic psychiatric care compared to those who receive a prison sentence.

Our patients can not just sit by the time.

They are also required to understand as far as possible the cause of the crime for which they are convicted and they must also be able to apply strategies that ensure that they do not relapse into crime.

At the same time, they must recover from a serious mental illness, learn to understand the illness and be able to manage it, says Christina Blom to SVT Nyheter Öst.

One of five regional clinics

It is not certain that the double killer will be cared for at the clinic in Vadstena if he is sentenced to forensic psychiatric care, but the clinic in Vadstena is one of a total of five forensic psychiatric regional clinics in Sweden.

Those clinics have a so-called shell protection to be able to take care of the most difficult, sickest and most dangerous patients.

The actual care at the clinic is conducted in teams.

- It makes an opportunity for a holistic view of the patient.

Then individual care plans are drawn up together with the patients.

The goal is for them to be rehabilitated and for them to receive as optimal care as possible in view of the patients' conditions, says Christina Blom.

In Sweden, one can be sentenced to forensic psychiatric care with a so-called "special discharge examination".

In short, this means that the convicted person cannot be discharged by the doctors at the forensic psychiatric clinic.

Instead, the Public Prosecutor's Office must be informed of a chief superintendent or an inmate who has applied for, for example, leave or discharge.

Then it is up to an administrative court to decide whether the care is extended or not.

This is what a patient room at the regional clinic in Vadstena looks like.

What the room looks like and what the patient has access to varies.

Photo: Östergötland Region.

The days of forensic psychiatry vary

What a day at the forensic psychiatric clinic looks like varies for each patient.

- It obviously varies depending on the mental state, safety levels and risk of relapse.

But also the level of function and where in the care process the patient is.

But it can be about daily things like cleaning the room, washing, cooking and attending meals.

In Vadstena, we also place great focus on physical activity and exercise.

Then the patients also get to practice social skills by spending time with other patients and staff.

Patients must also participate in various types of investigations and possible substance abuse or psychotherapeutic treatments, says Christina Blom.

If the patient also has benefits, the person can go for a walk or go to the library.

- But largely everyday life is about trying to deal with the severe psychiatric symptoms and the knowledge that you have committed a crime.

We also work with crime processing.

This means that you try to get the person to gain insight into why you committed the crime for which you were convicted, says Christina Blom.

Has 10 percent of the seats

The regional clinic in Vadstena has recently built a new hospital.

Since December 2019, there has been room for a total of 86 patients in inpatient / compulsory care.

- We only have occasional seats right now.

It's not full, but we only have a few places.

The regional clinic in Vadstena accounts for 10 percent of the places for inpatient forensic psychiatric care in Sweden.

According to the Regional Clinic in Vadstena, there is a male predominance regarding their patients of 9/1.

Patients are often cared for for various types of psychotic illnesses and the vast majority have had more or less extensive contacts with psychiatry even before the verdict.

Violent, property and drug crimes are the most common index crimes.