nurses in corrections with criminal history?

jackstem · Jul 21, 2009

hi
just curious if depts of corrections hire nurses who are in recovery to work in the jails prisons?
wondered if doing jail time for drugs/alcohol/etc would be a bar to employment? do you think it varies by state?
would you as a nurse in recovery work at a facility where you had done jail time?
whats your thoughts?

Some great questions blondnursey!

Call the department of corrections and ask them if they hire recovering nurses. That's the only way to find out for sure. I've never done time (although I could have done 8 years), but I'm not sure I'd work where I did time. I only say that because I wouldn't want one of the "residents" to recognize me and cause problems (like offering to provide inside info on the nurse who might be.....whatever). Just a thought.

I think a recovering nurse would have a great deal to offer to those incarcerated due to substance abuse and/or addiction. Check it out and let us know what happens.

Jack

blondnursey · Jul 22, 2009

i think, like you, that recovering nurses would be a great asset to prisons/jails.

im going to put this question in the correctional forums too, maybe they will know!

thanks!

jackstem · Jul 22, 2009

i think, like you, that recovering nurses would be a great asset to prisons/jails.
im going to put this question in the correctional forums too, maybe they will know!
thanks!

It's a shame the number of people incarcerated for drug misuse and dependence related actions is so high. A woman I know who lost her son to a heroin overdose said it well. Addiction is the only disease where the person suffering with it must be punished before they get help/treatment. And the really sad thing is, very few in the prison system receive evidence based treatment. If we don't effectively treat any chronic disease it will progress to the point of irreversible damage and even death, depending on the disease. This makes perfect sense to everyone, even the untrained layman. However, when it comes to this disease, we turn our rational brain off and react emotionally. It's pretty difficult to manage a potentially lethal event or condition if everyone freaks out. Think back to the times we were students or rookies faced with an emergency at work. Because we lacked adequate knowledge, training and experience, we weren't sure what to do. We made decisions based on all those deficiencies. When more experienced colleagues arrived, they provided the appropriate interventions and treatments. When the crisis was over there was a debriefing (hopefully) with questions, answers, and (again, hopefully) learning which improved our ability to deal with the next similar incident appropriately and effectively. That rarely happens with this disease. Everyone thinks they understand the disease and how to deal with it so they don't read current literature and they don't attend programs regarding aubstance abuse and addiction.

Let us know what happens with your search!

Jack

Editorial Team / Admin · Jul 22, 2009

I highly doubt any Correctional facility would hire a nurse who had served time within that institution.

I worked in Corrections, and one of the questions was specifically geared towards that as well as, "do you have family members who are serving sentences within this institution?". Both questions answered in the affirmative would deny employment.

blondnursey · Jul 22, 2009

so does the reverse apply?

what if you were working and a family member was sentenced to your prison?

as for serving time & working there, i was thinking more along the lines of having spent a weekend in jail or so, not an actual prison term for serious stuff.......

thanks!

Editorial Team / Admin · Jul 22, 2009

I can only answer based on my experience.

If a family member is incarcerated at the facility after they were hired, it is up to that nurse to declare this to administration; in other words, totally honest and up front. Many nurses are faced with the possibility that family would be incarcerated after they were hired. Jobs were not stripped in this instance.

as for serving time & working there, i was thinking more along the lines of having spent a weekend in jail or so, not an actual prison term for serious stuff.......

You would have to check with each facility in question in that case. I'm sure it would be on a case-by-case basis just like with any criminal charge/conviction/incarceration.