Nursing: A Career As A Career In Prisons

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Undergraduates who desire to pursue a career in nursing must consider the implications associated with this field prior to making such a significant commitment. In the nursing field, a wide variety of specializations exist, such as working in a pediatric department, working for the department of corrections, or assisting in the emergency room. Regardless of the specialty, all nurses strive to achieve the same goal, to improve the happiness and overall health of the patient. The primary role of a nurse is to perform Basic Life Skills (BLS) such as Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), assessing patient’s health, administering treatments and medications, assisting the doctors as well as providing information for the family and patient on how …show more content…

The prison system can be an extremely tense, heavily regulated environment and the nurses must always be aware of their surroundings. Working as a correctional nurse requires a special certification called Correctional Health Professional training. This training consists of learning about prison system security, dealing with inmates, personal safety and overall safety of the facility. After the training, the nurse then will take the Correctional Health professional exam and, once passed they are certified to work in the prison. People think that being a nurse in the prison system is a dangerous job. Judy Fender, when asked if she thought that working in the prison was more dangerous than in a regular nurse setting she stated she never thought so (Fender). It was described that wherever a nurse works there is always some chance of violence. Judy Fender explained that in prison people know who the “bad guys are, the ones wearing orange jumpsuits. The good guys are the ones with the badges who come running when help is needed. Every staff member in the prison is responsible to not put themselves in a compromising situation (Fender). In the correctional facility, nurses have different roles in the medical department. There are nurses that will be administering medical lines such as intravenous lines (IV’s) and medicines. Other nurses are running the sick call, which is a when a nurse evaluates the inmates who have requested attention for some

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