willing to interview??

**nurse** · Apr 9, 2007

I'd be happy to answer questions, and if you posted them here I bet you get lots of replies.

kell1566 · Apr 10, 2007

thanks so much for your help!!! I hope to give me class a basic day to day for the correctional nurse.

what shift do you work/pay? what does a typical shift look like?? how many inmates do you care for? is an officer there with you at all times? did you need any previous experience or classes that were needed for your position? what issues do you see here that may differ in a hospital setting? how closely do you work with the MD and local hospitals?

thanks for all of your help!!! this will be great to introduce to my class since we dont get thsi experience in clinical!! :monkeydance:

nancykday · Apr 10, 2007

I see that your from PA, I am willing be willing to help you out. I work for the PA DOC at a female SCI and if needed I can get you hooked up with other PA DOC across the state if necessary. I also know nurses who work at SCI Graterford if you are intrested. You can PM me if you want.

**nurse** · Apr 10, 2007

An "optimal", normal day at my prison, weekday day-shift:

Two nurses and a CNA taking care of the infirmary that can house 6 men for anything from medium risk psych "I said I was going to kill myself in the recieving room" to end stage HIV and the rare really acute thing like some TPN running or new CVA or something just out of ICU. Walk in, get report, assess the guys in the infirmary and then start sickcall/treatments while keeping an eye on the infirmary guys. Sick call is triage for any health complaints by the inmates, they drop a note and are scheduled to come over and be seen. The goal is to fix as many as you can with over the counter stuff, education, without dropping the ball on anything that might need a doctor immediately.....schedule for a doctor visit another day possible because he's already got a line scheduled for that day too, but weed out all the athletes foot/ acne/ mild back pain kinda stuff that you can.

While all this is going on, there is a dental assistant and possilbly a dentist seeing THIER line of guys. The aformentioned doctor is seeing scheduled acute visits and chronic disease visits, there are guidelines set by an agency called the National Commission of Correctional Health Care that sets the guidelines and accredits facilities along the lines of JHCCO for hospitals. There's a nurse assisting him, taking off his orders, and perhaps doing HER own thing with infectious disease.... keeping the statistics and follow up for TB testing, MRSA & CA MRSA, that stuff. Discharge planning for guys getting released that need help with care for diabetes or hiv or whatever. There's a full time med nurse pouring for all the guys on the compound and ordering the meds they give themselves and keeping track of thier compliance, ordering the stuff for the infirmary and emergencies. There is a DON and a Health Services Administrator. There is a full time mental health staff with 4 or 5 counselors and a psychiatrist that comes once or twice a week.

At our place, we have one MD 5 days a week and one NP 5 days a week. We use MD's from other prisons in the state to share call. We get to very good understanding with these docs. We interact almost not at all with doctors at the hospitals. They usually talk with our MD's if someone is sent out.

NO special training. We will hire straight out of nursing school, though it's good to have a little seasoning on you because your assessment skills are so critical, as well as your confidence when telling these guys what they need to do, or what's wrong with them.

One other thing common to prisons, we are also the emergency people. You can and do call 911 sometimes, but that's AFTER YOUR evaluation and notifying security and (unless there is no pulse or spurting big quantities of arterial blood). We are the response when they fall out of the top bunk and have a bloody head and won't respond, break themselves on the basketball court, hang themselves, or the infamous chest pains and seizures that happen. Also psych emergencies, like taking themselves or thier roomie hostage with a pen or a razor to a throat.

All in all, it's kind of dynamic and exciting on a limited level. We do a lot without much money. MASH with a lot more rules.

Did I answer them all? There's of course more more more that we do, but in a nutshell............ Oh, officers, we will have one in the medical department when maybe 8 or 9 inmates are in there loose, but there's lots more security that can get there quick and once you've been in for a while you become very effective at being security yourself. I'd swing a hole punch in a minute if I needed to. And I sure wouldn't let one of them grab it first.

Good luck with your report.

wareagle31 · Apr 18, 2007

HI...I'll try to answer what I can.

I work in a county prison(work camp) environment. We house about 200 male inmates. I am the only nurse on staff. Typically in a day, I hold sick call about 6:45am. Usually see about 5-15 inmates each morning. Some of those are refills and blood pressure checks. I keep up on TB tests and physicals for the inmates. I give flu shots in the fall. I also provide HBV vaccines and TB testing for the staff. I see emergencies as needed. We go off site to the MD when needed. I go with the inmates when we go to the MD. We have a dental van that comes onsite once per month. I go out on the dental van with the inmates as well. I schedule eye MD appts. An officer goes anywhere with me when we are off site. As for being in the medical dept with me, no officer is usally present. I did not need any "special" training..I am self learning everyday! I read the state policies and Procedures and try to guide my day by these. Hope this helps some.

Please feel free to ask any more questions you have! :)

Monica RN,BSN · Aug 19, 2007

Are you ever fearful for your safety being alone with the IM's? When you accompany an inmate to an MD appointment, who is left in the infirmary to watch the hen house?

wareagle31 · Aug 23, 2007

I am the only nurse onsite...so when I am gone...there is no one on site. I have never felt uncomfortable alone with an inmate, but I never let my guard down either...

Monica RN,BSN · Aug 24, 2007

I am the only nurse onsite...so when I am gone...there is no one on site. I have never felt uncomfortable alone with an inmate, but I never let my guard down either...

so what happens if there is an emergency on the compound when you are out on transport?

wareagle31 · Aug 27, 2007

The same thing that happens after hours when I am not onsite....the officers provide first aid...call 911...whatever the case be. I am on call 24/7, so they call if they need me.