What’s it like to live in a nursing home inside a prison? No one knows better than Sally Whitham, CCWF Skilled Nursing Facility’s longest resident.
Tucked away inside the Paris Lamb Treatment Center at Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) is a small area called the Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF). It houses incarcerated individuals who are terminally ill, recovering from surgery, or otherwise require round-the-clock care.
The SNF opened in 1990 — CCWF’s first year — and is set up like most hospitals with floors waxed to a high shine and neutral colors on the walls. But while most hospitals are bustling with activity from visitors and medical staff, few people are allowed in the SNF. Patients’ doors lock with a heavy key, causing the echo of each lock or unlock to reverberate inside. The effect is jarring. And unlike most hospitals, the SNF houses very few people: approximately 20 at any given time.
Inside one small room lives Sally Whitham, age 73. She is the SNF’s longest resident, having lived there for more than 26 years.
Whitham was rehoused in the SNF in January 1999. According to Whitham, following a back injury, a doctor prescribed her pain medication contraindicated for epilepsy. As a result, Whitham, an epileptic, experienced a seizure that led to a debilitating stroke. The stroke resulted in partial paralysis on her left side and other medical issues, which left her unable to care for herself.
Whitham’s room contains two hospital beds, though she currently has the room to herself. She sits on her bed wearing a blue muumuu with white polka dots, a neck brace, and a wrist brace, and happily points out how she has decorated her space to highlight things important to her: inspirational quotes, Bible verses, drawings, and various art pieces showcasing her love of the Las Vegas Raiders. Even Whitham’s wheelchair, which she named Susie, is adorned with Raider flags and logos.
Whitham alternates between Susie and her bed, which she describes as having a “lived in” look since she cannot make the bed herself. As she describes her time in the SNF and her more than three decades of incarceration, her blue-gray eyes sparkle with intelligence despite her brain injury. She wears her graying hair loose down her back, but looks forward to going to CCWF’s cosmetology class so she can get it trimmed. Like many older people, her skin is fragile and bruises easily. Several bruises in varying shades of plum, red, violet, and brown are visible on her right arm and legs.
Living in the SNF is isolating. Residents have access to dayroom and courtyard areas but they go largely unused.
“It gets lonely back here,” said Whitham, tears welling in her eyes.
Being away from the vast majority of CCWF residents causes her to question whether she is forgotten. As a result, she tries to take advantage of any chance she is afforded to leave the SNF. For example, every incarcerated individual must attend an annual classification hearing. While many CCWF residents take that opportunity for granted, Whitham likes to attend her hearings, which are held on Facility B.
Being away from the vast majority of CCWF residents causes her to question whether she is forgotten.
Living in the SNF also presents challenges. Permanent SNF residents cannot avail themselves of all the opportunities available for the general population (GP). When she is told she cannot go to a group or event, Whitham takes the news hard. “Why can’t I go out there? What’s wrong with me?” Whitham wonders.
Even though the majority of SNF residents are assigned to the GP, they were not able to physically attend any of the farmers’ markets recently held at CCWF. “I got a pumpkin,” said Whitham. “But I would love to have gone.”
Despite the challenges, Whitham nonetheless lives with hope and relishes opportunities to give back. She is the sole Inmate Advisory Council (IAC) representative for SNF. The IAC serves as a liaison between CCWF administration and the incarcerated population. “I talk to medical when someone is having problems,” Whitham offers as an example. But, being a Marine veteran, Whitham always follows the chain of command.
Feeling lonely or isolated is nothing new to Whitham. During her time in the Marine Corps, she was one of the very few women – “WMs” as they were then called – who enlisted. “There were only two bases experimenting with WMs becoming MPs [military police],” said Whitham. As a result, she was stationed at Camp Lejeune and eventually became an MP on base.
Within the tiny SNF community, Whitham seeks to be a listening ear, an advocate, and even someone who will share items from fundraisers with those who may not be able to participate in them. Whitham will participate in CCWF’s next fundraiser where residents can purchase items from the warehouse store Smart & Final. Whitham has at least two SNF residents in mind with whom to share goodies.
“I bought the fruit snacks and Rice Krispie treats to share with my neighbor and another lady who’s blind,” Whitham said.“I’m not rich, but I’ll give what I have to help somebody because they need it.”
Whitham also engages in as much self-help work as possible given her disabilities. She proudly shares her red folder filled with chronos and certificates documenting the groups in which she has completed.
A sad fact for individuals housed in the SNF is that residents die, since it also serves as an end-of-life facility. Whitham has experienced her friends’ deaths on multiple occasions. “I talk to people after someone dies. I try to give them spiritual help,” said Whitham.
“My faith gives me purpose,” said Whitham. “I don’t think I’d be the person I am today without faith.”
Amber Bray writes from Central California Women’s Facility, Chowchilla, California. Bray is the editor-in-chief of the incarcerated-run newspaper, CCWF Paper Trail.