Gary Mendoza

I've never had or heard of ICS/NIMS training and I've never had any problems getting a job, but I imagine having more certs wouldn't hurt and might give you an edge over someone with similar experience.

Yes, if you do it at your own facility you'll just need to ask the directors of those depts and schedule it. If you want to do it at another facility, contact the unit directors and ask them if you can shadow. I've done it many times just so I can ge...

Go to the Emergency Room, in a level I or level II trauma center. You'll have lots of autonomy, but you'll be super busy and literally have patients lives in your hands. It's not for the faint of heart, but if you like a good adrenaline rush and auto...

California's rates have dropped dramatically within the last year. For ER, I use to see $2500 week no problem; now most contracts I've seen are around $1800 / week or less. There are still some good rates in California, but keep in mind all the exper...

Find a recruiter you're comfortable with, a recruiter can make or break an assignment. Insist on a guaranteed hours clause and get anything promised to you by the agency and the manager in the interview in writing, in the contract. Insist on a claus...

Hi, I'm a travel nurse and there is a test you have to take for your Texas license. I've never taken it, but I've been told by many other nurses that it's very basic. It's called the Nursing Jurisprudence Exam. Welcome to the Texas Board of Nursing -...

I can't tell you what you should do, I don't know your personal or financial situation. However, I will tell you that I went to nursing school (RN) and had no prior experience. Matter of fact, I didn't even know how to use a stethoscope properly (I a...

I bought a Littman Cardiology III twelve years ago and it's still working beautifully. Only scope I've ever had to purchase.

Before you think about taking a travel med/surg position. Imagine the worst patient you've ever had, now imagine having eight of those patients without any help/support, no techs and no nurses willing to help you. No one to help you with call lights,...

I never felt the need to secretly walk around. My staff felt completely comfortable with me and were never nervous with me around. I am very approachable and that's very important. Trust is essential. One of the things that I think made my staff love...

During the application process or job interview, can an employer ask about my health? No. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) strictly limits what can be asked during an interview. According to federal law, an employer can't ask if you have a d...

If it were me, I would try to contact the dept. he works. You might try calling the dept he's in and find out he was in an accident and that's why he didn't' call you. I've seen that happen many times.

I'm a ER travel nurse and I've seen many, many ways of securing IV's and my personal favorite is tegaderm and one piece of tape, about 1/2 inch over the edges of the tegaderm to help keep things secure, makes for easy removal and it's less painful fo...

I was VA staff in the Emergency Dept.

OPM requires a specific format for your resume, here's an example of how to list a job on your resume: Example: Program Analyst GS-343-11 January 2009 - Present 40 Hours/Week $63,000/Year *Experience/Accomplishment *Experience/Accomplishment Here are...

Only you can determine if it's too much, I would say continue what you're doing for now and if becomes too much make adjustments as needed. Many people in my nursing class worked 2 jobs and did nursing school. They looked like the walking dead most o...

If you signed a contract with them that had a 'non-compete' clause before you accepted employment at the hospital they might have cause, but having a 'non-compete' clause and enforcing it is two entirely different things. It's very hard to enforce an...

It's impossible to answer this question without knowing the backstory. There are so many variables and so many different situations that could have lead to you resigning. I will say that generally most agencies really don't care so long as you have g...

I've been told by many teachers that before major tests they will give their students peppermint hard candies and a few professors told me they tell their students to do the same. Not sure what the correlation is other than maybe giving the brain ple...

"Complete all 24 of your Nursing Continuing Education Requirements with our ANCC and Ohio Board of Nursing approved courses. Get unlimited certificates for one year only $30." CEUfast - Ohio Nursing CEs If you're still skeptical I would call the Ohio...

No, I wouldn't. I started college as a computer science major and the only reason I changed was because IT jobs were in very low demand and people were fighting over jobs. So I switched to nursing for the job security, which it has provided. I was ha...

It's a real thing. I'm a travel nurse and some places have this green container by the pyxis that's called a Cactus, where you can waste liquid meds and solid meds. Here's what one looks like: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/56412dd3e4b0e6862e...

I briefly worked as staff at a big VA and I asked HR about this, I was told that just because you get your Masters and meet all the requirements doesn't guarantee you'll get your level III. They said they don't give them out very often due to budget ...

One small hospital I just finished a contract at did this, they would wait until all the staff were at the nursing station (there were three day shift nurses, two night nurses and one tech for each shift) and give report. I didn't really like it beca...

Personally, I love triage. How you handle the situation all depends on what's going on, but I have a very 'tough love' attitude. If they are banging on the windows I will, very firmly, tell them to stop doing that or I'll call the police and have the...