Caring and Custody: Two Faces of the Same Reality

Abstract

This report presents nurses' perspectives and expectations of correctional nursing practice and the educational preparation for this nursing specialty area. Caring and custody as interrelated yet frequently adversarial concepts in correctional nursing practice are discussed based upon the qualitative results of semistructured interviews with 28 nurses employed in selected New York State correctional facilities. The need to increase the educational preparation for correctional nursing practice, provide continuing education, decrease administrative bureaucracy, increase resources, improve working relationships with security, and increase respect for correctional nursing was found.