prison_nurse

I'd probably have said "pr - only option at this time..."

If you wish to go into private practice then you can prescribe and provide therapy. However, I have two jobs and I am expected only to prescribe. It's all down to dollars and cents....

Many schools do bridge programs, but along the way you do have to get your RN and sit for the NCLEX.

Hi, This is quite an undertaking! I have a couple of ideas: Prison culture - e.g. security is considered the primary focus in the correctional setting. Consider the difficulties faced by new nurses working in an environment where "caring" for patients may be perceived as "babying inmates". etc...etc... Do those nurses stand their ground, or do they change to fit in with the dominant security culture? Theories I would use include Bandura's Social Learning Theory... Can't think of another one off the top of my head... As far as art? Hmm... That would come later! The other idea is prison as the new mental hospital. This is definitely a problem. The mentally ill end up in prison because of the lack of mental health care in the general population. You could go many ways with this - lack of availability of newer meds, overcrowding because of increase of inmates, security environment vs therapeutic milieu, difficulty hiring qualified providers... Theory - Hildegard Peplau perhaps - interpersonal relations. Art - my favorite pic - Edvard Munch "The Scream". I hope this has been somewhat helpful... K

Hi Big Moses! I don't know if I can be of much help, but here goes. I already had a masters degree so I was looking for a post-masters only. I looked online for distance learning programs because I really don't have time to go to campus. Then I filtered by price. Those which were way out of budget came off my list. Then I looked at number of credit hours required. Lastly, look for school reviews. I think the job outlook really depends on the geographical region and funding of community health in your area. Searching online for jobs does not bring up and awful lot of job opportunities. There is a Facebook page for psychiatric nurse practitioners which often has postings for PMHNP. They seem to be normally in the NW and NE. It wasn't hard to get my first job (correctional setting) because I already worked in the department. It was actually harder to find preceptors. I had to use the same person for both practicums because all the community health centers did not want to use students. I think the easiest way to find a job is to try to do your practicums in the setting you would like to work. I think it's very competitive out there, and it helps for prospective employers to know you as a student.

Elkpark, I agree that PMHNPs are used primarily for medication evaluation. I really don't do much more than that. I hope I can be therapeutic during my time with the client, but I know that in less than 30 minutes, it's really not possible. In the prison setting, I work on a unit, so I can be a little more therapeutic as I see the patients all day long. In the community setting, it's meds only..... Kristine

Being a member of APNA does have some perks for Nurse Practitioners. When I applied to the ANCC for certification as a PMHNP, I saved a lot of money off the price, so it paid for itself. There is some good information on the website along with free CEUs at times. I joined as a student years ago but let it lapse after the discount membership expired because I preferred to use the money to subscribe to nursing magazines. I think it depends on how you may benefit from the subscription. Take a look at a sample journal on the site, look at the benefits and then make up your mind! Kristine

It means that if a prisoner takes a hostage, he will not be allowed to use the hostage to leave the prison. Prison security will use force, deadly if necessary, to rescue the hostage.

In the crisis correctional environment, we typically use 5mg Haldol with 25mg Vistaril IM. (We never use Ativan - benzos are not freely used in our setting). We can intervene earlier and give smaller doses, because we are seeing these patients before they get to the extremely agitated and grossly psychotic stage. If we do have to go higher, then 10mg Haldol and 50mg Vistaril IM. Benzos can also be activating for some people. I remember in the state hospital setting giving a young lady Ativan. Wow... We never did that again! She was bouncing off the walls..

Crystal, I think what you really need to know is therapeutic communication and appropriate interventions. They may ask "what would you do for/if" types of questions, but I'm just guessing. I see from your post that your last job was not the best experience. I would not focus too much on that except to maybe mention the under-staffing problem. Be positive about why you want the job in psych, why you would be the best candidate and what you have learned in your previous job which is helpful to you.

I agree with your statement. I left the state hospital and went to work in corrections because it's safer in prison. Plus, in the state hospital there were no repercussions for purely bad behavior. I saw a lot of people get hurt and it became too much for me to go to work everyday and feel good about my job.

I say it depends on several factors: Length of orientation Number of staff working with you Experience with emergencies Correctional nursing is really "hit the ground running". I remember when I started corrections I had several years under my belt as an LPN and RN, but I wasn't prepared for the types of emergencies I had to deal with. Many times I was the only nurse scheduled, and it could be very frightening at times. My advice would be to try agency work first. If you like it then apply full time, if not, then nothing's lost.

I am a full time psychiatric nurse practitioner in the prison system, but I have also worked in medical. Chronic care management in prison is a full time job as many inmates are physically older than their stated age, and are generally sicker than other populations. The formularies are usually restricted to generics, but this isn't too much of a problem. Treat the inmates appropriately and you won't have a problem. If you are only expected to work 6 hours per week, I say go for it. It is a unique experience, and NPs are in high demand in corrections!

You are allowed to take your own mace? That surprises me as that would be considered an unauthorized use of force. I would check before you bring something in that may get you into trouble.

I have applied for the program and have been accepted for the next cohort starting in June. It is difficult to find anything posted about this school other than their own information. But, I found this faculty from UTMB who is enrolled in the program: http://son.utmb.edu/faculty/lea.asp I find that rather encouraging, plus an article from the Advance Magazine for NPs, and this information from the DNP org website: http://www.doctorsofnursingpractice.org/dnpprograms_detail.php?American-Sentinel-University-148