Correctional nursing questions?

KScott · Jul 21, 2006

A max. security prison not too far from me is advertising. I'd never thought of it until I came here and read some of the posts. My questions:
I have a brother in a med. security a couple of hours away - would that preclude me from working?
Because of my essential tremors, I have trouble with IV's, but can do IM and IV push meds - do they do a lot of IV's in correctional?
Am I too old? I'm 57.
Thanks in advance.

I'm not a nurse, so I can't answer your nursing questions, but I used to work at the county jail. As far as your brother is concerned, I would just call the recruiter and ask if that's going to be a problem. You don't want to go through the whole hiring process and find out it is a problem at the end. I can tell you what I remember the nurses doing at the jail, which is running sick call, and passing meds. The infirmary had a few beds. I remember they had a kid with a colostomy bag in one. The rest were usually empty. The really sick and injured went to the county hospital.

I have a friend who's ex-husband just died in prison. He had gotten pnuemonia, but it was un-diagnosed for a long time. He finally got so sick they sent him to the hospital in Tucson. They kept him there for a while and said he had an enlarged heart. He was sent back to prison where he died. Of course, I don't know all the details. I tell this story just to illustrate, in Arizona, anyway, it seems the really sick prisoners are sent to hospitals outside the prison.

All of this is anecdotal. I'm sure if you check with the human resources department for the prison, they will have a detailed job description of the position.

texascowgirl · Jul 21, 2006

nah you aint too old..actually you will find alot of "almost retired" nurses in correctional health. i can count on one hand how many IV's i started in all my years of working prisons in two states

A max. security prison not too far from me is advertising. I'd never thought of it until I came here and read some of the posts. My questions:
I have a brother in a med. security a couple of hours away - would that preclude me from working?
Because of my essential tremors, I have trouble with IV's, but can do IM and IV push meds - do they do a lot of IV's in correctional?
Am I too old? I'm 57.
Thanks in advance.

texascowgirl · Jul 21, 2006

oh and no of course your brother working in a nearby facility wouldnt preclude you. matter of fact, in the prisons i have worked at, nepotism was big-everyone and their brother, spouse, uncle, grandpa worked in the same prison..all in the family ya know

BSNinTX · Jul 21, 2006

As others have said, check with the recruiter. The big question is: is your brother there as an employee or as a "guest." If he is an inmate, it is likely that you will not be able to work there. That varies, though.

As for skills, check with them about what they do. Some places have a well-developed infirmary, where this might be an issue. Other prisons have a clinic, just like a doctor's office. In that case, IV's are not a big issue. I do very few, perhaps one a month. If there are other nurses on the shift with you, this is unlikely to be a big issue.

The bottom line is, contact them and get some info.

A max. security prison not too far from me is advertising. I'd never thought of it until I came here and read some of the posts. My questions:
I have a brother in a med. security a couple of hours away - would that preclude me from working?
Because of my essential tremors, I have trouble with IV's, but can do IM and IV push meds - do they do a lot of IV's in correctional?
Am I too old? I'm 57.
Thanks in advance.

banditrn · Jul 21, 2006

oh and no of course your brother working in a nearby facility wouldnt preclude you. matter of fact, in the prisons i have worked at, nepotism was big-everyone and their brother, spouse, uncle, grandpa worked in the same prison..all in the family ya know

Texas - guess I wasn't very clear - my brother is an inmate - not in the one I would be applying at, tho.

Thanks to all of you for your replies. :)

texascowgirl · Jul 21, 2006

no, that would not be a problem, as far as i would know at least in the states i have worked in. as long as you aint working in the facility he is incarcerated in!

Texas - guess I wasn't very clear - my brother is an inmate - not in the one I would be applying at, tho.
Thanks to all of you for your replies. :)

Rambo-ette · Jul 24, 2006

I've been working in corrections for the past 10 years. If you have a relative in a correctional facility, most will not prohibit you from working there; you just can't have contact with that relative in your day-to-day duties and you have no "special priveleges" as regards that relative (e.g. visitation, etc.). Just be sure to advise the facility that you're applying at if you know or are related to anyone who is incarcerated there.Sometimes, especially in jail settings staff members may have a friend or family member who gets admitted - they just have to advise their supervisor, who will alter their assignments if necessary.

You will work hard, use all of your nursing assessment skills and nursing judgement. As far as IV's, that depends on the facility that you work at. Some have full infirmaries that are like hospitals, others don't. You will probably be working with other medical staff whose abilities may compensate for the ones you're rusty at! There are also many positions available that are not clinical positions - e.g. Health Service Administration, Nurse Educator, Director of Nursing, Quality improvement, etc. Don't feel that you can't fit into the position!

Correctional nursing is as good as the nurses who work it! You can make a difference. Yes, there are negative outcomes in prisons, but there are also negative outcomes in hospitals. Most of us in corrections wouldn't want to work anywhere else. Try it.

J.R. Lambert

Vice-President of Policy, Accreditation & Quality

Armor Correctional Health Services, Inc.

JR

HOOSIERNW · Jul 24, 2006

I've been working in corrections for the past 10 years. If you have a relative in a correctional facility, most will not prohibit you from working there; you just can't have contact with that relative in your day-to-day duties and you have no "special priveleges" as regards that relative (e.g. visitation, etc.). Just be sure to advise the facility that you're applying at if you know or are related to anyone who is incarcerated there.Sometimes, especially in jail settings staff members may have a friend or family member who gets admitted - they just have to advise their supervisor, who will alter their assignments if necessary.
You will work hard, use all of your nursing assessment skills and nursing judgement. As far as IV's, that depends on the facility that you work at. Some have full infirmaries that are like hospitals, others don't. You will probably be working with other medical staff whose abilities may compensate for the ones you're rusty at! There are also many positions available that are not clinical positions - e.g. Health Service Administration, Nurse Educator, Director of Nursing, Quality improvement, etc. Don't feel that you can't fit into the position!
Correctional nursing is as good as the nurses who work it! You can make a difference. Yes, there are negative outcomes in prisons, but there are also negative outcomes in hospitals. Most of us in corrections wouldn't want to work anywhere else. Try it.
J.R. Lambert
Vice-President of Policy, Accreditation & Quality
Armor Correctional Health Services, Inc.
JR

Correctional nursing is facinating..............Do you staff outside of S.C.?

What is your company's web site? Thanks..

Palmo · Jul 26, 2006

Hi,

we do IV s in our facility...

As far as 57...boy, I hope not. We have a nurse who is about 80...her energy level is not 80, tho.

The age ranges at our place is from 20 to 80...alot in their 40's and 50's...maybe a few 60's...