 | According to Correctional Service Canada, nurses play a key role in providing care to
offenders serving time in Canada’s prisons. There are more than 700 nurses working within the Canadian penal system, many at one of
the 53 federal penitentiaries. They are the largest group of
health-care professionals attending to the
health-care needs of inmates, providing a wide range of services. This type of nursing is
unique because these nurses are always having to balance providing holistic care while maintaining a secure setting. (Correctional Services Canada, 2012)
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Nowadays inmates are older, sicker, remain in prison longer, and come from backgrounds of high risk for poor health and little access to health care services or treatment. This population is characterized by insufficient health education, lack of preventive care and involvement in high risk behaviour such as drug use. Each day approximately 10% of the prisoner population request nursing services (Flanagan, 2001).
Correctional services attempts to provide health care service which is approximate to community standards. The International Council of Nurses in 1998 emphasized that all prisoners and detainees have the right to health care and human treatment (Flanagan, 2001). “Correctional health care is a "nurse-driven system" and nurses are the primary health care providers in prisons. Correctional nursing is a combination of emergency and community health nursing with primary care and chronic care dimensions” (Flanagan, 2001, p.68).
NurseTV - Nursing Behind Bars |
This page was created by BScN students of York University for the Nurses' Experience in Healthcare Environments course.
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