I’m the director of nursing at a state prison. I received a shipment of supplies yesterday and 200 toe tags had been added to my order. The state has rented coolers to store bodies and it hasn’t been able to get body bags. We’ve been instructed to order extra trash bags and refer to them as "plastic bags" when utilizing them for bodies.
We’ve managed to keep this pandemic out of the prison so far, but it will arrive. It’s evident that, when it does, the resources will have already been expended on the general population. My patients will be left to me and my 19 nurses who are trying to help 1200 inmates armed with nothing but one mask each and an eight-bed infirmary that never has an empty bed. I have three oxygen concentrators, four nebulizers, and no IV pumps. Only dial flow tubing.
I know much of society believes these guys are expendable but they aren't all "bad." Many of them are young people who’ve made poor decisions and gotten caught. They have parents and kids who love them and so many will be productive, law-abiding citizens when released. Unfortunately, many will receive the “death penalty” because we’re not prepared to handle the influx of illness that is imminent in the next weeks.
I love these guys the same way nursing home staff members love their residents. Yet I’m forced to put on a face that reassures staff and inmates that everything is under control.
NOTE TO READERS: If you know an SMI prisoner who would like to receive mail, please send me a brief description, a photo if you have one, and a mailing address. Email it to me at dede@soonerthantomorrow.com. Or message me with your information on Facebook. I’ll add that person to the blog Pen Pal page. SMI prisoners need to hear from us — more than ever — in the midst of this COVID-19 pandemic.
Photo credit: Marcelo/Flickr