Making Sense Of The Letters Behind Your Healthcare Provider’s Name

By Seth Lammming and Hannah Faeben
From PHN Issue 51, Winter 2023

At some point in time, you’ve probably been in a doctor’s office or medical facility and noticed all sorts of letters after people’s names. MD, PA, DO, NP, RN, the list goes on. The alphabet soup can get confusing. In this article, we will break down the basic differences between physicians and mid-level providers and what some of these letters mean.

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Surviving Breast Cancer

By Chrystal Pfeifer
From PHN Issue 51, Winter 2023

My name is Chrystal and I have been on the inside since 1988. … Yes, 33 years! I have always, always been aware of the fact that we must take care of ourselves physically, emotionally and spiritually. I was 24 when I entered and am now 56. I could write a book.

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Urge Surfing

By Ms. Gege
From PHN Issue 51, Winter 2023

Urge Surfing is a technique for managing your unwanted behaviors. Rather than giving in to an urge, you will ride it out like a surfer rides a wave. After a short time, the urge will pass on its own. This technique can be used to stop or reduce any unwanted behaviors or habits, including emotional reactions such as “blowing up” when angry, overeating, and other unwanted behaviors.

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Convict Chronicles: NO REGRETS

By Leo Cardez
From PHN Issue 50, Summer/Fall 2022

Regret runs through everything, and no man exists as he once was. People in custody have an intimate relationship with regret – left to face the suffering and damage we have left in our wake. It is as if we are stuck in a barrel at the bottom of the ocean with no options – there is nothing worse.

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Ask PHN: Colon Cancer

By Belinda Christensen
From PHN Issue 50, Summer/Fall 2022

Dear Prison Health News,
Thank you for having me on your mailing list. By the way, do you know anything about colon cancer? My father died of it in July of 1999, and one of my brothers died of it in 2013, so I know it runs in my family. I would highly appreciate learning more about it, if you can.
— Gabriel Fuentes, California

Dear Mr. Fuentes,
Thank you for your letter, and for the wonderful drawing. I’m very sorry to hear that your father and brother passed away from colon cancer. I’ve provided some information below about screening and prevention from the American Cancer Society and the Colorectal Cancer Alliance, two organizations that work to educate people about cancer prevention and treatment.

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What To Know About MONKEYPOX

By Olivia Duffield
From PHN Issue 50, Summer/Fall 2022

You may have heard recently about an outbreak of a virus called “monkeypox” in the United States and elsewhere. As of July 2022, there have been over 3,000 recorded cases of monkeypox in the U.S. It was declared an international public health emergency by the World Health Organization on July 23, and, at this time, there have now been a few cases identified in prisons throughout the U.S.

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The “BIG THREE” and Depression

By Ethan Macks
From PHN Issue 50, Summer/Fall 2022

Do you ever feel like you just don’t want to wake up and face the day? Do you feel unmotivated and restless? In small amounts, this is normal for most people, but if you find yourself experiencing this almost every day coupled with self-defeating thoughts and a feeling that overall things are just not worthwhile, you may be seeing the early signs of something I am all too familiar with. Depression is widespread in prison, and you may be thinking to yourself, “What is there to look forward to in the penitentiary?” Unfortunately, that is exactly the problem. Prison breeds emotions like anger, sadness, and despair. On top of all the negativity that goes on, there are countless reminders of what’s going on in the outside world. Some people handle these feelings better than others, but I believe that most of you who are reading this can relate. I feel that with the right tools, you can recognize a low mood and remedy this issue before you fall into a very dark place. An isolated mind is your own worst enemy.

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A Tool in the Struggle to End Medical Copays

By PHN Editors
From PHN Issue 50, Summer/Fall 2022

Activists in Pennsylvania have started a coalition to end the $5 copay for medical care in state prisons. The coalition includes FAMM, the Pennsylvania Prison Society, the Coalition to Abolish Death By Incarceration (CADBI), the Institutional Law Project, and Physicians for Criminal Justice Reform—and now Prison Health News has joined too. For those in prison in Pennsylvania, you can help! We need to show the DOC that the copays are truly a hardship for incarcerated people and their families. To do that, you can start using the grievance process when you are unable to afford a copay. The DOC tracks grievances, so seeing grievances over copays will help them understand how often people in prison can’t pay. If you’re not in Pennsylvania, you can do this too, but there is more power in numbers where there is a group of activists taking action together.

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COVID Prison Testimonies: Laderic McDonald in Missouri, August 2020

August 31, 2020
Laderic McDonald
Potosi Correctional Center, Missouri

This is Laderic McDonald and I am writing you to ask you to advocate on the behalf of me and other offenders at PCC.

We currently do not have any Dial soap or any anti-bacterial soap at canteen when we placed our Ad-Seg canteen orders. We are only allowed 2 bars per month per policy, so if you attempted to order Dial soap, you may not have gotten any soap at all. How can we keep our hands clean? How can we sanitize our cells? They do not allow us to clean our cells, a Big Health Hazard! We have no soap and COVID-19 is still pummeling America. Please call Potosi Deputy Warden of Ops, Jody Glore and advocate on our behalf. Tell him we need to be afforded access to cleaning/hygiene supplies that will keep us CORONA FREE.

Guards are not wearing a mask in Ad-Seg. They have to feed us, escort us to medical, showers, rec cages, phones and etc, but they are not wearing a mask, and they cannot practice social distancing.

It would be nice if they released offenders with no conduct violations out of Ad-Seg so we can take care of ourselves. Ad-Seg is unsafe and has offenders at risk for COVID-19. Not a good situation!

Please do something. We need your help.

With all due respect,

Laderic

Editor’s note: Ad-Seg is a term for solitary confinement. Prison Health News did respond to this letter when we received it, and we sent some information about how to advocate for oneself using grievances, lawsuits and other means.

I Encourage You to Get Your COVID Vaccine

By Comrade Angel Unique

From PHN Issue 47, Fall 2021

As a fellow prisoner and comrade, I encourage you to get your COVID-19 vaccine when you are allowed to do so. I did—two doses of Moderna. The way I see it, our captors shamelessly made no realistic attempts to protect us. None. But, now they are offering us a chance to protect ourselves, the communities our prisons are located in, our potential visitors … on the streets. The luxury of the option to get vaxxed or not is there, but for those of us inside, we each know our own conditions. There is simply no way—zero—we can ever hope to go somewhat back to normal programming without the benefit these vaccines guarantee!

About 90% to 95% effective at preventing hospitalization or death! Wow! Serious side effects are extremely rare … so, please. Get vaccinated. It’s the only way for prisoners. I send my love and solidarity by the stars above.

—Comrade Angel Unique 🙂 xoxo