Orca ADN, ASN, RN

Hospice, corrections, psychiatry, rehab, LTC

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All Content by Orca

  1. Orca

    HELP! Class assignment needs to be completed

    Orca replied to Bluejay2002's topic in Correctional

    1. How long was your training prior to working in the prison? I had a two-week orientation. 2. Do you feel the self defence course offered prepared you for attack? Somewhat. No training can prepare...
  2. Orca

    HIPAA as applies to prisoners...PLEASE HELP!!

    Orca replied to katchmoleen's topic in Correctional

    Here are a couple of references that may help you. From the Florida Department of Corrections: http://www.dc.state.fl.us/pub/compass/0303/10.html A reference about HIPAA in forensic practice:...
  3. Orca

    can a nurse lose license if she have a mental illness?

    Orca replied to Ms.RN's topic in Psychiatric

    I have not worked at the facility in question for about eight years, and they may have since changed their policy. What was even more puzzling to me about this is that although we were not affiliated...
  4. Orca

    need info on depression in crit care units

    Orca replied to Saifudin's topic in Psychiatric

    She told the doctor that he and his collegaues ought to write it up as a scientific paper. I have no idea whether they ever
  5. Orca

    can a nurse lose license if she have a mental illness?

    Orca replied to Ms.RN's topic in Psychiatric

    As others have said, having a condition alone would not make you susceptible to losing your license. The way that illness affects you might. If it creates a condition in which you neglect, abuse or...
  6. Orca

    The Kinder Gentler Psych Unit

    Orca replied to Meerkat's topic in Psychiatric

    I worked on a restraint-free unit. It's a great theory, but there are situations in which restraints are the best recourse. Case in point: On a geropsych unit, I went to report. About midway through...
  7. Orca

    Psych nursing student needs help!

    Orca replied to Blondielox's topic in Psychiatric

    Assess your audience. You can find out a lot about what they need by talking to them and finding out their levels of knowledge and knowledge deficits. That way you can tailor your presentation to...
  8. Orca

    need info on depression in crit care units

    Orca replied to Saifudin's topic in Psychiatric

    My sister mentioned an experience she had several years ago while working as a travel nurse. A physician decided to experiment with the use of Prozac with chronic ventilator patients. Of the 13...
  9. Orca

    getting into psych nursing

    Orca replied to Undecided7's topic in Psychiatric

    I was put into a charge mental health position right out of nursing school. That was an odd situation - the hospital was opening a new mental health unit just as I was graduating. As far as getting...
  10. Orca

    Questions about clozapine

    Orca replied to dekatn's topic in Psychiatric

    I work in a medium-security prison. In our extended care unit, there are three inmates on clozapine. Blood work is required every seven days, and the orders are written for two weeks. A couple of...
  11. Orca

    Anyone work intake/receiving?

    Orca replied to SlavicNurse's topic in Correctional

    In the intake area at my institution, the nurse gets base vital signs and gathers basic health information. The actual intake physical is done within the first week by a doctor or PA. An inmate can...
  12. Orca

    Scary story!

    Orca replied to jen42's topic in Correctional

    Setting limits early on is key. The first time you tell an inmate that it is inappropriate to make suggestive or sexually-oriented comments, word gets out that you don't tolerate it. The nurses who...
  13. Orca

    Blood Draws

    Orca replied to 2003rn's topic in Correctional

    I have done one in my entire career - a timed blood draw when the lab tech was tied up elsewhere and she asked me to cover it for her. In the lab tech's office, she has a guide taped on the wall that...
  14. Orca

    Had A Medical Code on the Psych Unit!

    Orca replied to Meerkat's topic in Psychiatric

    I had something like this happen when I worked in a stand-alone mental health hospital. One of our intake staff didn't ask the right questions about this patient's medical stability, and he was...
  15. Orca

    is psych "alot" less physically demanding than med/surg?

    Orca replied to RN1263's topic in Psychiatric

    My last hospital psych job was on a geropsych unit. The original concept was that we would not accept patients who were not ambulatory or able to care for themselves. This lasted until someone figured...
  16. Orca

    Correctional Nursing Salary

    Orca replied to NurseNikki5's topic in Correctional

    RNs in Nevada DOC are making around $32 per hour base, no Social Security deductions and no state income tax. There is a 5% night
  17. Orca

    Privatized Prisons

    Orca replied to texascowgirl's topic in Correctional

    I have not worked directly for one of these outfits, but I know plenty of people who have. Prison Health Services ran the medical operation at Clark County Detention Center (downtown Las Vegas) for...
  18. Orca

    Husband is a Correctional Officer; thinking about working as RN there

    Orca replied to LilRedRN1973's topic in Correctional

    I work for the Nevada DOC at a medium-security prison about 40 miles north of Las Vegas. Correctional nursing in Nevada is the place to be, as far as I'm concerned. The state gave us a substantial pay...
  19. Orca

    Husband is a Correctional Officer; thinking about working as RN there

    Orca replied to LilRedRN1973's topic in Correctional

    Working in corrections, about 90 percent of the job is how you conduct yourself. Apart from security concerns, there are very few differences in the way I operate inside the medium-security prison...
  20. Orca

    Should I report an LPN to the state?

    Orca replied to MickeymomRN's topic in Correctional

    The owner's license does not supercede yours. If you are in a situation you consider unsafe and you accept the assignment anyway, the responsibility becomes yours. You are absolutely correct in being...
  21. Orca

    Share Your Funniest Patient Stories...

    Orca replied to Trvln Nurse's topic in Nursing Humor

    I was working the brain injury unit of a rehabilitation hospital. I needed to start an IV on a male patient who spoke only Chinese. I was making no progress trying to explain to him by gestures what I...
  22. Orca

    Share Your Funniest Patient Stories...

    Orca replied to Trvln Nurse's topic in Nursing Humor

    Two incidents stand out. Both happened early in my career, when I was working on an adult mental health/chemical dependency unit. The first was a male patient with bipolar disorder, who I would later...
  23. Orca

    Resources to study for certification

    Orca replied to autumn-moon's topic in Psychiatric

    Mine was on paper also, but I took the test in 1998. I do not know whether they have gone to computers. It would have made things much easier (I finished the board exam in 25 minutes - the ANCC test...
  24. Orca

    enclosed nurse's station

    Orca replied to margo123's topic in Psychiatric

    I have worked in both types of environments. One facility I worked in had an enclosed nurse station with Lexan panels. The entry door to the nurse station was a Dutch door so that the top half could...
  25. Orca

    Resources to study for certification

    Orca replied to autumn-moon's topic in Psychiatric

    If you mean the ANCC exam for Psychiatric and Mental Health Nursing, I have taken it. After taking the exam, I was convinced that I had failed it. I thought that it was worse than the nursing board...