by Nichole Manna | The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office spent the past year bolstering its medical care in the Duval County jail after it received blistering criticism for the number of deaths reported at the facility, conditions that prompted one national accrediting agency to place the jail on probation.

The National Commission on Correctional Health Care lifted the probationary status of the John E. Goode Pretrial Detention Facility in June, according to documents The Tributary received in a records request, which shed light on efforts JSO has not publicized to improve conditions in the aging jail. JSO did not return Tributary requests for an interview.

JSO’s work correcting those problems has led to the addition of 14 medical staff members to the downtown jail, according to the NCCHC review.

Five months after the probation was placed, and soon after The Tributary reported that deaths tripled after JSO signed a contract with Armor Correctional Health Services, a private jail health care provider, Sheriff T.K. Waters ended that contract and signed a more expensive contract with another private company, NaphCare.

The Tributary found jail deaths decreased by 50% in the year after JSO inked the new NaphCare contract. The Tributary asked JSO in November what changes had been made within the facility to improve medical conditions there and did not receive a response.

But copies of the jail’s 2024 inspection reports, turned over to The Tributary in response to a records request filed last month, provided insight into what JSO and NaphCare have been doing behind the walls of the troubled facility to fix the numerous problems with inmate care. Those reports included a review of the jail by the NCCHC in June 2024, which concluded the jail was 100% in compliance with its accrediting standards, a stark change from its past findings. A separate review by the Florida Corrections Accreditation Commission found the jail met high standards, and a third accrediting agency found no deficiencies in its operations last year

The reports reveal that NaphCare increased the jail’s medical staff by 14 full-time employees, which includes the addition of physicians, an assistant health services administrator, administrative assistant, physician, mid-level providers, RNs, LPNs, and assistant mental health director. Two correctional officers were also assigned to the medical clinic to escort inmates to and from appointments.

JSO has previously said the higher cost of the new contract was in part to grow its medical staff, though none of the reports offered a breakdown of the additional staffing costs.

The booking area is now staffed at all hours by a mid-level medical professional who addresses immediate needs for those entering the jail, and assists those with chronic conditions or special needs. A full-time position was added to make sure there is also a nurse in the same area day and night.

NaphCare also added three medication carts and three roaming nurses.

Nichole Manna is The Tributary’s Senior Investigative Reporter. She covers criminal justice and you can reach her at nichole.manna@jaxtrib.org.

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