Communication is a key component of delivering correctional healthcare. Correctional nurses must overcome many communication barriers in order to manage patient care in a jail or prison. Various communication networks are necessary. Nurses must communicate well with other nurses, among the healthcare disciplines and with custody officers to accomplish paiten […]

The correctional health care news from 2011 is discussed by Lorry Schoenly and regular panelists Catherine Knox and Sue Smith, correctional nurses with clinical, education and management experience. Key themes from the previous year were healthcare legal claims, medical cost shifting, medicaid funding potential and transgender treatment. […]

Originally aired December 22, 2011: Jeffrey Keller, MD, FACEP, discusses the thorny issue of self-reported food allergies in the correctional setting. There are many misconceptions about what consitutes a food allergy. In addition, food preferences can be inappropriately identified as an allergy. How should correcitonal nurses sort out food allergies? Dr. Ke […]

Originally aired October 4, 2011: Lorry chats with Kevin Connor, BSN, RN, CCHP, President of the California-Nevada Chapter of the American Correctional Health Services Association about the image of correctional nursing. Kevin is Communicable Diseases Coordinator for the San Bernadino Sheriff's Department and works out of the West Valley Detention Cente […]

Originally aired September 17. 2011: Lorry talks with Dr. Tina Maschi, assistant professor at the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service in New York City about her work on behalf of prisoners. She is a 2010 recipient of the competitive Hartford Geriatric Social Work Faculty Scholars Program Award, which is funded by the Harford Foundation and t […]

Originally aired August 28, 3011: A chat with Ann Norman, SEN, RGN, a long time prison nurse now advising the Royal College of Nursing where she assists in the development of policy support for members locally and nationally across the 4 UK countries. In her role she actively support the interests of prisoners and detainee, prison and police custody nursing […]

Originally aired June 29, 2011: Paul "Trey" Flores, BSN, RN, CCHP shares an insider look at nursing in county jails and detention facilities. He should know, having worked a variety of these settings from small 400 inmate sites to those with over 3,700 average daily population. […]

Originally aired May 26, 2011: Lorry interviews Tre' O'Brien, BSN, RN, CCHP-RN about her work in developing critical thinking skills for correctional nurses. Tre' has been a registered nurse for over 23 years with experience in nursing including acute care, outpatient services and management. She has worked in correctional nursing for the past […]

Originally Aired April 7, 2011: Guest Gregory Famiglio, MD discusses his experiences with seizure management in the inmate population, especially the challenges of psychogenic seizures and the female population. Dr. Famiglio practices in a female prison in the Pennsylvania Prison System. […]

Originally Aired March 25, 2011: In this episode Lorry talks with Susan Tiona, MD, who is heading up a project which applies the Health People 2020 effort to the US inmate population. Dr. Tiona is a familiy practice physician currently practicing in a medium security prison in Colorado. More Health Inmate 2020 info can be found at thier wesite: http://www.he […]

Originally Aired February 17, 2011: Kat Major is an RN working a mobile unit that intervenes in psychiatric emergency situations in California. Psychiatric Emergency Response Team (PERT) members ride with law enforcement during off-hours to respond to calls concerning mental health clients. Learn more about this unique service and the corrections connection. […]

Originally Aired January 13, 2011: Josiah Rich, MD, MPH, of Miriam Hospital and Borwn University talks about his research in preventing and treating HIV in the inmate population. Dr. Rich is the director and co-founder of the Center for Prison Health and Human Rights at the Miriam Hospital Immunology Center and is recent recipiant of one of 12 NIH grants to […]

Originally Aired December 16, 2010: Effective communication improves patient safety and assures quality care, yet is a great challenge in the sometimes fragmented correctional healthcare system. Idaho Prison System nurse leaders share their tips for improving clinical communication including using the SBAR model for nurse-physician interactions. […]

Originally aired November 20, 2010: Valerie Lane, RN, CLNC, discusses legal risk for correctional nurses. Valerie is a certified legal nurse consultant specializing in correctional cases and has worked many years in the California Corrections System. […]

Originally aired October 27, 2010: A chat with Gail Kwarciany, RN, MSN, about her work with inmate cancer patients at UTMB, Galveston. Discussion includes the challenges of cancer care behind bars and the special needs of inmates with cancer. […]

Originally aired August 31, 2010: Susan Loeb, PhD, RN, discusses the National Institute of Nursing Research Grant funded project to include End-of-Life Care in corrections. Dr. Loeb is Associate Professor of Nursing at the Pennsylvania State University and Faculty Affiliate in the Gerontology Cneter and Bioethics Program. She is Principle Investigator for th […]

Originally aired August 19, 2010: Sue Smith, RN, MSN, CCHP-RN, joins Lorry to discuss the issue of failure to rescue. First recognized in acute care facilities, failure to rescue has come to be associated with understaffing, lack of communication, healthcare staff who become overly task oriented and to lack of vigilance. In the correctional setting, inmate-p […]

Originally Aired July 14, 2010: Piper Kerman, author of the memoir "Orange is the New Black" discusses her book and experiences in a federal prison, focusing on the healthcare perspective. […]

Originally aired July 1, 2010: A chat with Ellyn Presley, RN, CCHP, Public Health Nurse at Prince William County Juvenile Detention Center. Ellyn has worked in Juvenile Corrections for almost 20 years and is very active in professional correctional health care activities. […]

Originally aired June 17, 2010: Lorry chats with Jackie Moore, PhD, RN, CCHP-A, CCHP-RN, about the beginnings of organized correctional healthcare. Whe was there at the start! Dr. Moore has over 3 decades of nursing experience primarily in corrections and started the first correctional healthcare company providing services to facilities in the northeast. She […]

American Airlines Flight 63, carrying 197 people from Paris to Miami was diverted to Boston on December 22, 2001, after Shoe Bomber Richard Reid tried to ignite his shoe filled with explosives. "At the end of the day, I know I did the actions," Reid said when entering his plea. "Basically I got on a plane with a bomb. Basically I tried to igni […]

Layoffs are actually going to happen at the end of this month. Even during the great depression California did not lay off "prison guards." Their salary was cut, but they didn't lose their jobs. A combination of the recession, budget pressure, court action and political reality of realignment has taken its toll.On February 29 of this year a to […]

A C1 member sent in this photo of an unusual piece of contraband that's less threatening and more…artistic.The reader wrote, "Attached is a picture of contraband that we confiscated a few days ago while doing a mass shakedown at the Lee County Jail in Florida. It is a very well-constructed woman's purse. "It is made entirely from playing […]

By Dr. Bruce BayleyThe issue of incarceration in America has been at the heart of an ever-present and never-ending debate. On one side of the issue are those who feel incarceration is nothing more than an overpriced, inhumane attempt at punishment that does nothing more than force individuals into deeper and more sophisticated lives of crime. There are other […]

A resolution is a promise to initiate a good habit or to quit a bad habit. Unfortunately, the season for resolutions seems to last for a month and half. It starts in mid-December and ends around February first of the following year.Starting and maintaining good habits is important for the safety of all in the corrections profession. Yet, sometimes, what we t […]

By Joe Serio"As you work to overcome your self-created limitations, talk to your subconscious, telling it that instead of reacting, you're now going to respond with conscious choices."- Wayne DyerWe all have excuses at our disposal for not facing some of our most challenging tasks, for not facing things we deem too scary, for not facing oursel […]

I have worked in male dominated professions my entire life. I started in a county jail in the 80s where the only women were me, the nursing staff and a former Jail Matron who had managed to work her way up to Assistant Superintendent. When I got there in the 80's, I had little trouble adapting to jail life. The inmates seemed receptive but I faced chall […]

By Lorry SchoenlyAnother year is here and we can look back on plenty of correctional healthcare news from 2011. What top stories from the past year are most memorable to you? Here are my top picks for 2011 game changers along with suggested action to reduce their impact. #1 Legal eagles rule the roost Healthcare is now the most common legal issue raised by i […]

By Charles AlbinoIn the first segment of this series, I detailed some of the conditions that led to the formation of private companies to operate correctional facilities in the United States. As we move forward in Part 2, we will hear from the private sector and why they believe they merit a "place at the table" in correctional facility operations. […]

By Cherrie GrecoWhen well-known officials fall from grace, members of the general public express a variety of emotions and impose vigorous vocal judgment. Feelings of shock, disgust, and disappointed head-shaking are commonly exchanged at the water cooler. Faith in a system once trusted becomes fragile; trust caves in and is replaced by cynicism. In time, th […]