Failure to Rescue
Failure to Rescue is an intriguing concept currently gaining traction in healthcare. The term is defined as the inability to initiate action in a life-threatening situation. Hospital and high acuity areas were the first to investigate this phenomena but it is now being evaluated in med/surg and long term care settings.
This patient safety issue is definitely in the nursing care domain as nurses are likely first to encounter and respond to early signs of complications. Nursing vigilance is in order. Nursing is about patient safety.
How does this play out in corrections? Many near-miss sessions can be described in this setting. The patient population and environment can lead to cynicism and ascribing manipulative or secondary gain tendencies. In addition, inmate patients may not understand how to provide information about medical conditions. This population is more likely to be unprepared to giving a good health history. They may also feel they need to exaggerate symptoms in order to obtain care. In addition, mental illness will impact interactions with healthcare providers.
The custody environment can also lead to marginalizing or trivializing the health needs of inmates, secondary to other security concerns. Nurses can absorb a custody attitude toward patients which can be in conflict with the therapeutic nature of the profession.
Listen to some great examples of failure to rescue situations in correctional nursing in this recent Correctional Nursing Today episode. Sue Smith, MSN, RN, a highly experienced correctional nurse and educator provided background and experience to the topic.
Share your experiences with Failure to Rescue or near-miss Failure to Rescue in the comments section.
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BlogTalkRadio Podcasts- I Can't Eat That! Food Allergies in Corrections - Dec 22,2011 December 22, 2011Jeffrey Keller, MD, FACEP, discusses the thorny issue of self-reported food allergies in the correctional setting. There are many misconceptions about what constitutes a food allergy. In addition, food preferences can be inappropriately identified as an allergy. How should correctional nurses sort out food allergies? Dr. Keller is the president of Badger Cor […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Are Correctional Nurses Outcasts? - Oct 04,2011 October 4, 2011Lorry 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. Keven is Communicable Diseases Coordinator for the San Bernadino Sheriffs Department and works out of the West Valley Detention Center in Ranco Cucamonga, CA. The CA-NV ACHS […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Aging, Stressors and Inmate Health - Sep 17,2011 September 17, 2011Lorry 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 Hartford Foundation and the Gerontological Society of America […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Correctional Nursing in the UK - Aug 29,2011 August 29, 2011A 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 members locally and nationally across the 4 UK countries. In her role she actively supports the interests of prisoners and detainees, prison and police custody nursing staff, individuals who have a learn […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Thoughts on Correctional Nursing from the ACA Exhibit Hall - Aug 28,2011 August 28, 2011Lorry roams the Exhibit Hall at the 2011 American Correctional Association Conference in Orlando tracking down correctional nurses. They share advise for nurses new to the specialty.correctional nursing | American Correctional Association | Lorry Schoenly | corrections | nurse interviews […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Tales from the Jail: Inside Jail Nursing - Jun 30,2011 June 30, 2011Paul "Trey" Flores, BSN, RN, CCHP shares an insider look at nursing in couny 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.Jail Nursing | Correctional Health Care | Correctional Nursing | Trey FLores | Lorry Schoenly […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Critical Thinking in Correctional Nursing Practice - May 26,2011 May 26, 2011Lorry 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 16 years and currently practices as a clinical […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Understanding Inmate Seizure Disorders: Considering Psychogenic Causes - Apr 07,2011 April 7, 2011Guest 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. Seizures | Psychogenic | Corrections | Lorrys Schoenly | Gregory Famiglio […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Healthy Inmates 2020 - Mar 25,2011 March 25, 2011In this episode Lorry talks with Susan Tiona, MD, who is heading up a project which applies the Healthy People 2020 effort to the US inmate population. Dr. Tiona is a family practice physician currently practicing in a medium security prison in Colorado. More Healthy Inmate 2020 info can be found at their website: http://www.healthyinmates.org/Healthy Inmate […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- Psychiatric Emergency Response: Just In Time Intervention - Feb 17,2011 February 17, 2011Kat 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.correctional health care | lorry scho […]CorrectionalNrsgTday
- I Can't Eat That! Food Allergies in Corrections - Dec 22,2011 December 22, 2011
- Correctional Nursing Today Podcasts
- HIV Treatment in Jails and PrisonsOriginally 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 […]
- Improving Clinical Communication in CorrectionsOriginally 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. […]
- Reducing Legal Risk for Correctional NursesOriginally 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. […]
- Cancer Care Behind BarsOriginally 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. […]
- Infusing End of Life CareOriginally 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 […]
- Failure to RescueOriginally 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 […]
- Inmate Health Perspective with Author Piper KermanOriginally 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. […]
- Exploring Juvenile Correctional NursingOriginally 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. […]
- Correctional Nurse TrailblazerOriginally 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 […]
- Double Down on TB in JailsOriginally posted 06-02-2010: Janice B Hill, RN, MPH, is a correctional nurse leader with nearly 3 decades of experience with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Largo, FL. She is an active nurse educator frequently presenting on juvenile standards for the National Commission on Correctional Health Care. She was instrumental in the development of Fl […]
- Preventing Suicides in Jails and PrisonsOriginally posted 05-06-2010: Lorry talks with Anne Hanson, MD, about strides made to reduce suicide in corrections. Dr. Hanson is the director of the University of Maryland's forensic psychiatry fellowship program and chair of the American Academy of Psychiatry and Law's correctional psychiatry committee. She has worked in correctional psychiatry […]
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- Dealing with EmergenciesOriginally Posted 02-09-2010: Lorry interviews SUsan Laffan RN, CCHP-RN/A about how to handle emergency medical issues in a correctional facility. Susan has been a registered nurse for 28 years. She has worked in the ED for 28 years and correctional nursing for 18 years. Susan is currently the chairperson of the Academy of Correctional Health Professionals. […]
- History of Correctional NursingOriginally posted 01-21-10: Mary Muse, MS, RN, CCHP-A, joins Lorry to talk about the hisory of the correcitional nursing specialty and its future direction. Mary has over 14 years of correctional health care experience and was the Chief Nursing Officer for the Cook COunty correctional system for a dozen years. She currently works in the Wisconsin State Priso […]
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Many of my facilities do not have full time nursing staff. Corrections officers are expected to respond. You can compound such problems when deputies are faced with these type of health care issues. If nurses see problems with culture, training and communication imagine the perspective of a corrections officer.
In my experience the effectiveness with which these issues are handled comes directly from the top. If the facility commander is dedicated to the provision of good health care then it happens on all levels. If the commander has “outdated” views of the need to provide care, in my experience that, too, becomes the facility norm. The commander fostering a dedicated team approach including officers, nurses and provider staff does more to mitigate these problems that anything “medical” itself will come up with.
You make excellent points, Rob: I think the small jail with limited nurse coverage is the most challenging of settings. Custody officers are often put in the position of assessing health situations. That is not what they are trained for or what they have a mindset toward. Great observation that it comes from the top. Thanks for your great comments and thanks for being a part of this blog – Lorry
[...] in the patient safety movement and is now being addressed as it applies to correctional nursing. I wrote about it last fall and have continued to consider how this concept impacts practice in our specialty. This morning [...]
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