Life, With Dementia: Convicted Killers Caring For Other Inmates

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12. Many have no where to go. Some have no family outside, or they are unable to provide care;

availability of assisted care facilities are limited, and expensive. While "compassionate release" paroles for older inmates are on the increase in CA, those with severe medical disabilities simply may not make it on the outside.

Inmates with "good" track records have long been working as orderlies at CMC under the supervision of professional medical staff. And, as an aside, the medical staff truly works to provide the best possible care they can within the system. It's often a difficult balance they work to maintain - seeing the patient as a patient, not the criminal record, and seeing their professional role as different from custody's role. Most med staff are not directly Department of Corrections employees, they are independent sub-contractors. It's a tough balance to maintain. I admire those that can pull it off and provide decent medical care day-in-day out.