Correctional Healthcare RSS Feed

End of prison oversight not certain in Calif.

Sat, 28 Jan 2012 13:11:15 UTC

By Don Thompson Associated Press SACRAMENTO, Calif. — The court-appointed receiver overseeing California's prison health care system said Friday the state must keep its promise to spend more than $2 billion for new medical facilities before the federal courts can end an oversight role that has lasted six years.California committed to spending $750 million to upgrade existing medical facilities ...

Prison dilemma: Surging numbers of older inmates

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 14:06:03 UTC

By David Crary The Associated PressNEW YORK — In corrections systems nationwide, officials are grappling with decisions about geriatric units, hospices and medical parole as elderly inmates — with their high rates of illness and infirmity — make up an ever increasing share of the prison population.At a time of tight state budgets, it's a trend posing difficult dilemmas for policymakers ...

NY shoplifter leaves hospice, sent back to jail

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 16:54:33 UTC

The Associated PressMINEOLA, N.Y. — A New York judge who released a shoplifter from jail so she could spend her dying days in a hospice has ordered her back to jail.Nassau County Judge Francis Ricigliano received information Tuesday from the Long Island hospice that Diane McCloud could live another six months. A doctor earlier this month had indicated the 48-year-old was near death.McCloud made ...

Federal oversight of Calif. state prison healthcare to end

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:51:26 UTC

By Chris Megerian Los Angeles TimesSACRAMENTO, Calif. — Federal oversight of prison healthcare in California is nearing an end, a judge said Tuesday, six years after he ruled that abysmal medical conditions were contributing to an inmate death every week.U.S. District Court Judge Thelton E. Henderson said Tuesday that healthcare in state lockups has improved significantly since he seized control ...

Jailed teen dies after playing basketball

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:14:01 UTC

By Kim Janssen Chicago Sun-TimesCOOK COUNTY, Ill. — A teenage inmate who collapsed and died while playing basketball at the Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center Saturday had a history of high blood pressure and shouldn't have been allowed to play, his grandmother said Sunday. Terry Bell Jr., 16, had complained of feeling unwell and had high blood pressure Friday night but told staff ...

4 correctional healthcare game changers from 2011

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 21:21:37 UTC

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 inmates according to a Harvard Civil Liberties ...

4 myths about hangings in corrections

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 20:25:47 UTC

By Lorry SchoenlyHangings are relatively rare compared to other emergency events in corrections, but they can really screw up a shift and rattle staff involved in a post-hanging intervention. The actions taken in the first few minutes after a discovered hanging can be the difference between a hospital transfer and an in-custody death. Hanging is the most common form of successful suicide in corrections ...

Why undetected disabilities can be dangerous in a facility

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Mon, 10 Oct 2011 18:25:30 UTC

Do you know the physical abilities and disabilities of the inmates under your responsibility? We all know that the average age of the inmate population is increasing and that this group’s biologic age is greater than chronologic. In fact, most departments of correction consider inmates age 50 or higher to be elderly. It is not surprising then, that inmates can have functional disability that makes ...

Top correctional health care news from 2010

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Fri, 24 Dec 2010 15:49:14 UTC

Editor’s note: This article is part of the 2010 CorrectionsOne End of the Year Report. Please visit the main page for the end of the year report here. By Lorry SchoenlySeveral correctional health care news stories top the list as we near the end of the first decade of the 21st century. These stories define the year past and help frame the year ahead. Here are my picks for the top four news stories ...

Rapid blood testing speeds onsite treatment

Lorry Schoenly, PhD, RN, CCHP — Wed, 15 Dec 2010 21:31:33 UTC

In addition to streamlining your testing process, blood testing performed onsite can reduce transportation costs at your facility.

Significant Medical Behavior: Tactical Response to Medical Emergencies

Gary T. Klugiwicz — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 22:07:32 UTC

=In my last tactical tip, I discussed how to recognize the signs and symptoms of Significant Medical Behavior, a term used to describe a broad category of life-threatening medical conditions from Positional Asphyxia and Cocaine Psychosis to Excited Delirium. You can read it here: Significant Medical Behavior: Sign & symptoms of impending disaster In this tip, I am going to discuss how to respond ...

Significant Medical Behavior: Sign & Symptoms of Impending Disaster

Gary T. Klugiwicz — Tue, 7 Apr 2009 22:42:47 UTC

People die suddenly in custody everyday. We watch it on TV. We read it in the paper. We view it on the Internet. The bottom line is that they die. Over the years, these sudden custody deaths have been attributed to such things as positional asphyxia, cocaine psychosis, and excited delirium to name just a few. Lately these life threatening conditions have been bundled under the term of Significant Medical ...

Medical aid for officers

Roger Knight — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 20:19:03 UTC

Buy and carry packets of Quick-Clot�, a commercially available product, tested and used by the U.S. military to stop severe bleeding. You can buy a UFR pouch from Combat Solutions that allows you to carry four packages of quik-clot, a cinch tight dressing and a pair of gloves on your belt. This product allows officers to stanch severe bleeding in the event of an injury. For more information contact ...

The importance of attending to a prisoner's medical needs

Thu, 6 Sep 2007 16:29:32 UTC

Why is it so important for you to provide for a prisoner�s medical needs?

There are four main reasons why it's in your best interest to take care of a prisoner in you "care

Family sues after inmate falls ill, dies

Wed, 9 Nov 2011 00:18:20 UTC

The mother of an inmate who died after he was taken into custody has sued the Hamilton County Justice Center in Ohio.

Health care behind bars

Wed, 23 Feb 2011 22:29:35 UTC

Any given day, more than 1300 inmates are behind bars at Mobile, Alabama's Metro Jail. Many prisoners come with health problems, from mental illness and high blood pressure to the common cold.

Florida prison cancer center

Mon, 13 Dec 2010 20:34:35 UTC

Florida prisoners are getting their own cancer center and, for them, it's totally free. But don't worry, taxpayers weren't on the hook for the new facility. The Community Cancer Center of North Florida paid for everything.