A discourse on the feasibility of granting medical parole or medical furlough in the Philippines: Implications to the criminal justice system and penology

Abstract

This study was conducted to determine the feasibility of granting Medical Parole in the Philippine jurisdiction in order to address the problem of congestion in different penitentiaries in the country. Further, it aimed to identify the advantages and disadvantages and the possible implementation of this measure in the Philippine jail management system. This is a qualitative study using content analysis research design. This study included the different views of the key informants coming from different sectors who are the subjects of this study. By way of comparison, from the total number of twelve (12) key informants, coming from law practitioners, Medical practitioners and prisoners; there were ten (10) key informants who agreed that medical parole should be implemented, compared to only one (1) key informant who stated that it is ineffective while the other one (1) key informant stated that its effectiveness will depend on the proper implementation of the said law. The ten (10) key informants were comprised of three different stakeholders, namely: three (3) doctors, two (2) lawyers and five (5) inmates. While the remaining two (2) key informants were all lawyers. The results of this study supported the researcher’s assumption that implementation of Medical Parole is an effective tool in preventing congestion in jails and will provide a more humane condition for the inmates that could benefit from the enactment of the law. The data indicated that the medical parole is effective from the perception of the subjects of this study. There is a possibility of studying whether this new measure could be possibly used in the Philippine Legal System.