Thinking about correctional nursing

Trauma Columnist · Apr 3, 2017

Moved to correctional nursing

NMRN2017 · Apr 4, 2017

I worked in correctional nursing for 3 years, majority of the time at an all men's prison, although I did a few shifts at a Women's prison as well. In a lot of ways it was like "nursing in a bar". LOL Seriously, though. I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful MD and NP working there and their knowledge (that they freely shared) taught me a lot.

The diversity you can come across in prison nursing was surprising to me. You have this captive patient group (no pun intended there), who are dependent on you for ALL medical needs, so you see everything from routine vaccinations (flu, tetorifice, Hep A, B etc) to complex treatment for liver failure, AV malformations, diabetes, wounds. You name it.

The men were mostly all very respectful to the medical staff (except a few hateful individuals who treated the inmates bad -- they got disrespected in return). It is of course, always a risk. Depending on the facility you work at, there are people there who have nothing to loose (i.e.; already doing a life sentence), and there are irrational or mentally disturbed individuals as well. So taking that into consideration is a must.

But overall I would recommend the experience to anyone. I learned a lot, and it is definitely an underserved population!!

Good luck, and congrats on your eminent graduation!!!

Orca, ADN, ASN, RN · Apr 4, 2017

One of my colleagues once likened it to working in a small town - because that is essentially what you are doing. The medical team responds to emergencies and minor complaints. I have worked with both male and female populations during my correctional career, and each poses different challenges. Generally speaking, women seek care earlier and for more minor issues, and they always want to know the "why" of what is being done treatment-wise. The men try to tough things out, and by the time that they come to you, it sometimes takes a lot of time to get ahead of their issue. The women are generally better manipulators, giving you more plausible reasons to deviate from what you plan to do, or posing questions that can make you doubt your own reasoning. Many of the men are not sophisticated enough to pull this off.

It is a diverse specialty that can expose you to a lot of different things. I treated my first gunshot wounds in the prison setting, and I worked with an inmate who has a rare disease that only about one in every 50,000 people in the country have. I could have worked an entire career in conventional medicine and never seen such a case.

Dansko_shuffle · Apr 6, 2017

I think everyone should try it at least once in their career. I've worked in corrections for two years and I love it.

But it is most certainly not for the faint of heart.

You will see a little bit of everything as far as health wise. Chronic care such as diabetes, Hep C, HIV/AIDS, htn, etc, I could go on and on. And all types of mental illness. My facility houses men and women and I've had many pregnant women come through our doors as inmates. Corrections is one of the most diverse places.

I have learned about so many different diseases, medications, religions, transgenders, transsexuals, withdrawals/detoxes, gang affiliations, what tattoos mean, all types of things.

It has given me a lot of confidence as a nurse and it has given me a back bone, which I never had much of prior to working there. It's definitely toughened me up and I am thankful.

I prefer working with the men rather than the women. Both are manipulative, but the women are by far the worst.

Comparing it to long term care which I've worked in for 10 years, in various positions, but I have a lot more independence at the prison. My assessment skills are 10x what they were being full time at the nursing home, believe it or not. No we don't have wound vacs or crazy dressings/pressure ulcers or g-tubes at the prison, but we have so many other things. A lot of emergencies, but we also have plenty of fake emergencies. People fake chest pain and seizures and all types of things. At any given time, anything could happen and that's one of the reasons I like it so much, you must be ready to go at all times.

I say give it a shot! I hope you like it!

linoleum · Apr 9, 2017

Congrats on the shift in career! That was some good "background information" you gave. There is definitely a lot of behavioral health and rehab in correctional nursing. So, your experience will be useful. If you are working in the same area, there's a good chance you'll see some familiar faces.

The age of 60 tells me that you are not a potentially more easily hornswaggled 20 year old, so that's definitely a bonus. As for physical demands, there is a lot of walking and pushing a heavy med cart - but not much in the way of positioning large and/or combative patients so it's not the most physically demanding RN job, but also not the least.

I would not usually say corrections is a good fit for a brand new RN because you tend to have more autonomy and are required to think fast on a really wide range of things compared with a hospital for instance, but with your career history I wouldn't be so concerned.

Not long ago I answered some questions about correctional nursing here: https://allnurses.com/correctional-nursing/whats-it-like-1082837.html#post9298309 and you may find that helpful in your decision making.

Deasterly · Apr 12, 2017

Thank you all for your thoughtful replies. With graduation only a month away, it is time for me to start putting out resumes/applications. I'm so grateful for your encouragement. Please let me know about any particular tips to applying for correctional jobs, particularly in AZ.

Thanks again!

LPNTOBE2017 · Apr 13, 2017

CONGRADULATIONS!!!!!