Find a career in prison healthcare - it’s unique and challenging

27 May 2016 Taniamacdonnell

We’re looking for RGNs and RMHNs to fill a number of exciting opportunities within: Primary Care, Planned Care, Urgent Care and Substance Misuse and for registered Pharmacy Technicians to work in our Medicines Management Team. We also have a specific requirement for paramedics with HCPC registration to work as urgent care paramedics within HMP Eastwood Park and HMP Bristol.

2 prison nurses

We’re passionate about providing the same high standard of healthcare in prisons as we do in the community - if you share this aspiration, please read on.

Nursing opportunities

Planned Care (HMP Bristol and HMP Eastwood Park) – nurses in Planned Care work regular 9-5 shifts from Monday to Friday and are responsible for helping offenders manage existing or long-term health conditions. Nurses in Planned Care do not respond to urgent medical incidents on the prison wings. See our current vacancies

Primary Care (HMP Ashfield, HMP Leyhill and HMP Erlestoke) – these roles are similar to planned care roles but the hours are more variable. As well as focussing on providing healthcare to those with long-term conditions, primary care nurses also respond to urgent care call outs when required. See our current vacancies

Urgent Care (HMP Bristol and HMP Eastwood Park) – these are new roles in the Urgent Care Team, providing holistic care/intervention in order to prevent / reduce hospital visits and deliver rapid assessment and treatment to patients with acute illness and/or injury. Nurses in this area work 24/ 7 rotas (commonly working three 12 hour shifts per week). See our current vacancies

Substance Misuse (HMP Bristol, HMP Eastwood Park and HMP Erlestoke) – this multi-disciplinary team provides health care to patients with substance misuse issues. Nurses within this service assess a patient’s physical, social and psychological needs to develop a holistic health care plan for them and work 24/ 7 rotas, (commonly working three 12 hour shifts per week). See our current vacancies

Pharmacy opportunities

The Medicines Management Team consists of wing-based technicians who are responsible for administering and supplying medicines to patients, delivering pharmacy triage, drop-in clinics and supporting prescription pathways.

You will be part of an integrated health service where you will help vulnerable patients to self-care and understand their medicines better. See all our current vacancies

Paramedic Opportunities

At HMP Bristol and HMP Eastwood Park we are looking for paramedics with HCPC registration to provide urgent care to prisoners that require it within the prison system.

You will be required to undertake general health assessments, triage patient demands and respond to medical emergencies within the prison. The successful applicants will be expected to cover a range of shift patterns. Urgent Care is a 24 hour service.
See all our current vacancies

Come and meet us

Before applying, why not visit one of our prison healthcare teams to find out first-hand what working in a prison is all about and how exciting and rewarding it can be.

Open day – we’re having an open day at HMP Eastwood Park on 4 June – come along to meet our nursing and Medicines Management Teams who will be happy to answer your questions about working in prison healthcare. If you’d like to come, please complete the registration form and email it to: [email protected]

If you can’t make the 4 June open day or you’d like to visit another one of our prisons, contact our recruitment team:

Tel: 0117 9002221 or
Email: [email protected]

Apply now

If you’re interested in working in any of these roles we have full and part time positions available throughout our prisons.

See our current vacancies

Did you know:

  • All nurses working in prisons receive prison setting allowance and secure environment allowance of £1,250 per annum pro rata on top of the basic salary.
  • At Bristol Community Health we recognise previous relevant experience when offering starting salaries and eligible staff will receive a yearly incremental pay rise to recognise development in skills and experience.

Why work for us

Find out more

If you have any questions about any of our vacancies or working in the prisons, our recruitment team would be happy to speak to you.

Tel: 0117 9002221 or
Email: [email protected]

What our staff have to say

Florianne Menager, primary care nurse – HMP Bristol

Kelly Smith, planned healthcare nurse – HMP Eastwood Park

Hear two of our nurses Karen and Harriet talk about their roles and their passion for the job:

Our prisons

HMP Bristol is a category B male remand prison in North Bristol with a high turnover of inmates. It has an inpatient care unit with 24 hour nursing cover. There is a dedicated integrated drug treatment service with a multidisciplinary team that consists of prison officers, nurses and CARATs workers,

HMP Eastwood Park is in South Gloucestershire. It is a female prison with 360 inmates who are on remand, awaiting trial and serving short sentences. It has a dedicated substance misuse unit and a purpose-built healthcare centre.

HMP Erlestoke is a category C male prison and the only prison in Wiltshire. It has a dedicated substance misuse service.

HMP Leyhill is a category D open male prison in Gloucestershire. The majority of prisoners are categorised as low-risk.

HMP Ashfield is an adult male sex offenders’ prison in Pucklechurch on the outskirts of Bristol.

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