Forensic Psychiatric Hospital

We treat people who have been found not criminally responsible for a crime or unfit to stand trial due to a mental health disorder.

The 190-bed secure facility is located in Coquitlam, BC, on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded core territory of the kwikwəƛ̓əm First Nation (Kwikwetlem). kwikwəƛ̓əm culture is visible throughout the facility and is part of patient programming.

Our hospital falls under the jurisdiction of the BC Review Board.

We only accept referrals from BC provincial courts or community corrections staff. This applies to the forensic psychiatric regional clinics and the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital. We do not accept referrals from other health care providers.

If you are a health care provider and have questions about a patient/client’s eligibility, call the hospital. Contact details are below.

We treat people found not criminally responsible or unfit to stand trial due to a mental disorder. We help them integrate safely and gradually back into their communities when and if possible.

We also care for people who have been transferred temporarily from correctional centres to be assessed or treated under BC’s Mental Health Act.

Clients and patients at our hospital live with complex mental health issues. Most patients have a psychotic disorder such as schizophrenia. Many also have a mood disorder such as post-traumatic stress disorder, or a personality disorder that makes them anxious, paranoid or fearful.

Approximately 65% of clients and patients live with a combination of severe mental illness and a substance use disorder, also known as a concurrent disorder.

Examples of concurrent disorders:

• Schizophrenia and an opioid addiction
• Post-traumatic stress disorder and an addiction to alcohol

We provide the following services to patients at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital:

• Treatment, rehabilitation and reintegration to the community where possible
• Standardized psychiatric assessments for the courts
• Assessment and treatment of people who experience symptoms of mental illness while detained in correctional facilities

To ensure patients receive the best care possible for their complex needs, our highly trained, specialized staff and physicians provide assessment and treatment services in a safe, secure environment.

Our care is based on research and is trauma-informed. Trauma-informed means care teams make sure patients feel safe, secure and supported. Trauma-informed care is especially important for forensic patients and clients as most have encountered stigma, trauma or adverse childhood experiences.

Patients will receive care from a team of specialists, including:

• Psychiatrists
• Physicians
• Psychologists
• Social workers
• Recreational and occupational therapists
• Counsellors
• Psychiatric nurses
• Health care workers
• Peer support workers
• Educators/teachers
• Spiritual care practitioner
• Indigenous Elder 
• Pharmacists
• Forensic service officers

You can visit your loved one at the hospital:

• Tuesdays and Thursdays, 7 - 8:30 p.m.
• Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, 2 - 4 p.m. and 7 - 8:30 p.m.

You can visit your loved one at Hawthorne House and Community Transition Cottages:

• Saturdays, Sundays and holidays between 11 a.m. - 8:30 p.m.

If you need to reach your loved one, call 604-524-7700 and ask to speak with the social worker assigned to them. If the social worker is unavailable and/or it’s an emergency, ask to speak to the nurse in charge.

• Family and visitors are welcomed and encouraged. Special arrangements might be made if you are bringing children under the age of 18 with you
• The nurse in charge may end or change visits for clinical or safety reasons. The nurse reserves the right to refuse visiting privileges pending a review. They may also restrict the number of visitors for clinical or safety reasons
• When you arrive, report to the security office to fill in the visitor registry. The office is immediately to the right of the front entrance. You will have to confirm your identity and the name of the patient you are visiting
• Security will issue you a visitor tag in exchange for your ID. They will return your ID at the end of your visit
• You are not allowed to bring cameras, recording devices, or devices that can access the internet into patient care areas
• Staff will use their discretion in deciding whether items that you bring are allowed
• You must remain in the area designated by nursing staff
• You will not be allowed access if you appear to be intoxicated
• You and any items you bring with you may be searched
• We are not responsible for lost or stolen property
• The Forensic Psychiatric Hospital uses closed-circuit surveillance cameras. Our security staff will be observing you while you visit your loved one
   

• Children under 16 must be accompanied and supervised by an adult at all times while visiting the hospital
• Children are not allowed to wander unattended in any area of the hospital
• Children are not allowed to play on the grounds, and they must behave appropriately at all times

Ashworth units, our high-security units, have more visitor regulations for safety reasons:

• Ashworth patients may have only two visitors at a time
• You may not bring wallets, purses, handbags, backpacks, parcels/packages, bags, food, illegal substances, alcohol, any kind of weapon, glass or metal containers, medications, lighters, matches, or gifts onto the unit. We provide lockers for your belongings
• If you would like to give your loved one food, please make arrangements with the nurse in charge before the visit
• All visits to Ashworth will be supervised by nursing staff

All buildings, grounds and parking areas at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital are smoke-free. Please support our staff and patients by not bringing or sending tobacco or tobacco products to the facility.

You have the right to be provided information in a language you are able to understand. The Provincial Health Services Authority provides interpreting and language services to the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital. If you would like an interpreter to be present when you meet with your loved one’s treatment team, please tell them before the meeting.

Community outings are an important part of client and patient treatment plans.  

All community outings are carefully planned, supervised and supported. Outings need the endorsement of the BC Review Board and approval of the director.

Before clients and patients are considered for a community outing, we thoroughly and carefully assess their clinical well-being and weigh the risk of an outing. We also consider the impact of a client's or patient's presence in the community. We notify community and family members as appropriate.

Early community outings are always staff-escorted. Our staff are mental health professionals trained to manage people who may become disruptive.

As some clients and patients progress in their treatment and get well, they may be permitted short unescorted community visits to attend community-based programs on their own.

For every community outing, whether escorted or not, we follow careful safety and risk protocols to make sure clients, patients and the public stay safe.
 

We have solid safety and security protocols in place. As a result, we see very few unauthorized absences. In 2020, there were more than 6,000 day leaves, and 99.8 per cent of clients and patients returned on time.

If a client or patient fails to return on time from an authorized leave, even if they are only 15 minutes late, we initiate our unauthorized absence protocol. One of the first steps is notifying the local RCMP. They are responsible for letting the public know about the absence. We work with the RCMP to make sure the client or patient returns safely. 

The BC Review Board decides whether to release someone back into the community. Each client or patient has an annual hearing. Based on the hearing, the BC Review Board will decide if the person stays at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital, is discharged with conditions, or gets an absolute discharge.

A conditional discharge may include supervised housing, levels of monitoring, and abstinence from alcohol and other substances. Those who receive a conditional discharge continue to receive treatment at one of our forensic psychiatric regional clinics.

Those who receive an absolute discharge continue to receive care from their family physician or their nearest community mental health team.