Prison authorities in Far North Queensland are dealing with the state's largest outbreak of COVID-19 in a correctional facility, with more than 100 inmates testing positive.
Lotus Glen Correctional Facility is a high- and low-security men's prison south of Mareeba, with 950 inmates, meaning more than half of the prisoners are now in lockdown.
Queensland Corrective Services (QCS) said 322 prisoners were in isolation as close contacts of the facility's 105 positive cases.
Twenty-one officers have also tested positive.
Lotus Glen has a total staffing group of 464 people.
The health of sick inmates was being managed by Queensland Health, QCS said, and rosters had been adjusted to manage staff absences.
"These arrangements are regularly reviewed with Queensland Health, and as soon as they indicate it is safe to do so, we will ease restrictions.
"QCS has strong planning and robust processes in place to manage COVID-19 incursions from the community, including a four-stage operational plan which allows agile and effective responses to emerging situations.
"Every prisoner in Queensland has been offered vaccination, and anecdotally the uptake amongst prisoners is higher than the general public."
The outbreak is the worst in any Queensland correctional centre during the pandemic.
Of Queensland’s 18 prisons, COVID positive cases were being managed at 10 of them, in high-security and low-security facilities.
Executive director at social services agency Centacare, Anita Veivers, said there were a high level of prisoners who experienced mental health issues and isolation exacerbated that.
"Connecting with other people in that situation probably helps relieve some of that and so going into a lockdown scenario where people are isolated can only really be detrimental and difficult for people to cope with," Ms Veivers said.
"The boredom that can come with isolation and not having activities to be mentally stimulated with on a very regular basis can be an issue."
Ms Veivers said there was a concern that if loneliness in isolation was not well managed, problems arose when prisoners reintegrated into communities.
"I think it's in everybody's best interest that we have everyone in our community as mentally healthy as possible," she said.
