Which is a better experience prior to working in a Prison, ICU or Emergency Room?

[Cowboy Thug]

I was just curious which is a better experience prior to working in a Prison, ICU or Emergency Room? I'd prefer to work in an ICU than the ER but whatever makes my application look better with the USPHS for the Bureau of Prisons, I'd gladly consider. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Cheers.

[Guest371144]

Cowboy: I vote emergency room. The hgh tech ICU is not what you'll find in a correctional setting - but you will get a lot of trauma, assessment, and thinking on your feet skills in the ER. There will also be a variety of conditions from banal to life-threatening in the ER and that is also true in a large correctional facility.

Good luck to you and let us know what you decide!

[deyo321]

My opinion ER hands down. With the above reasons and you will become familiar with manipulative behavior.

[Cowboy Thug]

Thank you LORY and DEVO. Im about to graduate in December and wanted to know where to try to get myself into. I wanna get a strong year of experience before I join the USPHS and TRY to enter the federal prison system (as a worker that is!). I totally understood that the ER would be too high tech for a prison but I found I enjoyed the ICU slightly better than ER but if Im thinking of WHERE I wanna end up, I gotta go ER. My only rationale for ICU over ER is MOST nurses I've spoke with (I've worked in a hospital as a nurse-tech for over a year) tell me "if you can do ICU, you can go ANYWHERE". Sorry if this sparks ANOTHER post.

FATALLY yours, Cowboy Thug

[Guest371144]

LOL, Cowboy - I have ICU background and jokingly say "You have to be near death before I know what to do!" It is true that you get many experiences in that specialty area, but it doesn't prepare you for the assessment/diagnostics you need in the ambulatory-care type setting of corrections.

Good luck to you!

[Orca, ADN, ASN, RN]

ER hands down. If an inmate is sick or injured enough to need the skills of an ICU nurse, ICU is exactly where they will be. You will, however, see some trauma (I treated my first gunshot wounds in a prison setting), and a lot of lesser things not unlike what you would see in a hospital ER.

[aknurs]

1. Defiantly ER experience will be the best...Depending upon the size of the Prison, you never know what will be brought into the department, ie: beatings, stabbings, medical emergencies, etc...Although it is on a smaller scale than a regular ER, you will need to use the same triage assessments, & care ,accordingly as you would in an ER....Plus ER experience will look better on a Resume if you are applying for a Correctional Job, as prompt triage & assesment skills are a must when working in Corrections.JMO
   

[spongebob6286, BSN, RN]

i think it would be er. IMs sometimes come in jail with injuries sustained during the arrest.

[jschut, BSN, RN]

With my minimal experience (2 weeks) in my new job, I would definitely say ER too. There are many more emergency type things going on that you will need to take care of.

[kimned88]

ER without a doubt. As a DON at a 2700 bed jail, I won't touch a nurse without at least 3 years...unless they have 2 in ER, then I will consider.

[military spouse]

I think ICU experience is invaluble, but I have to agree with the other posters that ER experience will most realistically mimic the situations seen within the prison. In a shift we can see people with chest pain, stabbing, influenza, pneumonia, stroke, lacerations, etc.