MDOC inmates graduate nursing program

JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) - You probably know of the nationwide shortage of nurses and medical assistants in hospitals since COVID.

The Mississippi Department of Corrections is doing its part to fill that gap by offering certified nursing programs to qualified inmates and today, the first class of 29 soon-to-be-released offenders graduated in one of three medical areas: Certified Nursing Assistants, Phlebotomy and Medical Billing and Coding.

Brittany Jackson, a Medical Billing/Coding Grad, said, “I went to nursing school before I caught my charge. So I wanted to go back into that field, but with my record or whatever, you know what I mean, I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to do that. So, it’s just been a great opportunity to be able to pursue my dreams even though I’m incarcerated.”

Sheila Sherrod, who graduated with a Certified Nursing Assistant certificate, said, “It was a great class. It was a lot of learning. But overall, I love my teacher, and it was great.”

“This is all a part of the continuum of care I think that we were creating at MDOC,” said Bradley Lum, who works with MDOC.

MDOC now has two dozen re-entry programs to get potential parolees ready for good jobs, but Commissioner Burl Cain is particularly concerned about MDOC’s growing female population. According to national figures, mostly drug trafficking convictions are landing women in prison at twice the rate of men.

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