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I presented the survey to my healthcare colleagues. The biggest contributing factor for such a high number of "other staff and Administration" as the main cause of harm is due to Custody restrictions. Working in Correctional Healthcare is unlike any other medical environment. You are not only facing challenges with a lack of access to modern-day medical equipment, but you also need to find a way to work together with some staff who hold different values and beliefs when it comes to the offender population.
I was pleasantly surprised to see the wide range of responses, with the range of how people felt negatively affected. I think that is a direct result of how my colleagues intentionally choose a healthy and positive lifestyle outside of work.
I was surprised to see that half of the respondents had not yet met with the Psychologist.
Out of the respondents who had met with him, 33% met with him more than once.
Is there anything that you would like to add about the impact that working in Corrections has had on your overall wellness?
Overall, I have noticed increased stress in multiple areas of my life since working in corrections. This includes, stress about interpersonal dynamics at work (I.e. relationships with coworkers) and difficulty keeping up with high workloads (with added nuance that in state work it is hard to hold staff meaningfully accountable, particularly with the union. this means there are a lot of staff who have worked at the state for a long time, have become jaded and burnt-out in the system yet remain at work (due to retirement benefits, pay, complacency), which increases workloads or stress for those who are not in the same place of complacency). In addition, I have noticed due to inappropriate staff interactions and power dynamics at work, this initially impacted my social relationships outside of work. I noticed I showed up a lot more closed off and guarded in interactions and it still takes intentional effort for me to choose to be open with new people, particularly men. I would like to note, that in my three years of working at DOC while I have had very few interactions with people who are incarcerated that cross boundaries or make me uncomfortable, in these dynamics, I am able to have conversations and set a clear boundary that has almost always been respected and gained me respect and buy-in from the population. That is far less frequent with staff, in those boundary setting conversations with staff, I have noticed sometimes I lost respect and increased harassment at times. These dynamics are likely influenced by gender/power dynamics in the workplace. -Current DOC Therapist.
Is there anything that you would like to add about the impact that working in Corrections has had on your overall wellness?
I feel like working at corrections has made me a better person. The offenders have helped me create boundaries that I was very poor at doing before that. If you take the time and energy, the inmates can teach you a lot about yourself and a lot about good in the world. I feel the staff and administration are the most toxic part of corrections. I get more satisfaction through growth and development with the actual offenders than I do with the staff. The employees at corrections sometimes make a very toxic work environment. I’m still understanding why that is. But it affects me outside of work. I’ve never had an offender, their behavior, or any interaction from them affect me outside of work. I am overall very happy working in corrections. I feel a lot of enjoyment from my immediate staff members that I work with on a daily basis, and I feel like I grow with the doctor's knowledge. I just wish that some of the staff would practice more pro-social behaviors, just like we are trying to teach the offenders. -Current DOC Nurse
INTERVIEW WITH CURRENT DOC STAFF PSYCHOLOGIST
INTERVIEW WITH CURRENT DOC STAFF PSYCHOLOGIST
The DOC provides a staff Psychologist to all staff, free of charge, for us to use as a resource if we choose to do so. I had the opportunity to interview him and ask him some questions about his experience after working in his current position for 8 years.
The DOC provides a staff Psychologist to all staff, free of charge, for us to use as a resource if we choose to do so. I had the opportunity to interview him and ask him some questions about his experience after working in his current position for 8 years.
Some of the information that he shared that I found to be the most interesting and helpful:
A healthy person in corrections looks different than a non-corrections person.
The national average of the total number of visits with a therapist is about 3x higher within corrections.
The biggest cause of resistance among staff to seek help is trust. Many staff do not trust the correctional system and feel that with him technically being seen as a co-worker, what they share won't be kept confidential.
Overall, he does see improvements as a result, but it depends on the issue and how the person cares for themselves.
Over 50% of all staff have met with him at least once.
The long-standing policy of the number of visits allowed being 3 has ended due to the rising need for mental health care. The number of visits is determined by the mental health professional.
The biggest barrier he faces in providing care is Administration.
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