Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize, understand, manage, and use emotions effectively—both one’s own and others’. It includes five key components: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills. Each of these plays an important role in the day-to-day work of a correctional nurse. First, self-awareness helps correctional nurses recognize their own emotional responses to stressful situations. Working with incarcerated individuals can sometimes…
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Correctional Nurse Clinical Update: Keep on Person Medication Tips
A patient arrives at the medication window one morning with an empty blister pack of Truvada. It is only ten days since he received a month’s supply. He is evasive initially about why they are already gone. After some questioning, the nurse discovers that Truvada brings a high price on the prison black market as a ‘prevention’ for AIDs. Keep…
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Correctional Nurse Practice Update: Using Therapeutic Communication
I recently observed a Nursing Sick Call encounter and when it was completed, I asked the nurse a few questions about the patient’s complaint and discussed her use of the nursing protocols and the patient education she provided. I noted that she did an excellent job using therapeutic communication with the patient, and it was clear, as a result, that…
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