Ruby Vee BSN

CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching

Original Member of the Crusty Old Bat Society

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All Content by Ruby Vee

  1. Ruby Vee

    Where are all the "older" nurses?

    Ruby Vee replied to tjcnurse2b's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    I'm in my sixties, and have been a nurse since the 70s. I work crazy hours, but don't find myself constantly belittled and abused by nurse managers, physicians or the patients' families. Older...
  2. Ruby Vee

    Bored, Burned out?

    Ruby Vee replied to Mr. Nightingale's topic in General Nursing

    Three jobs in one year? That could be part of your problem. If you're constantly changing jobs before you have a chance to become competent (about two years), you're not really growing as a nurse....
  3. Ruby Vee

    Refusing to answer call lights

    Ruby Vee replied to beekee's topic in General Nursing

    If you've addressed the issue with her and there's no change, it's time to start documenting. You'll want to discuss it with your manager, but there's no point in doing that until you have some...
  4. Ruby Vee

    If you can work here, you can work anywhere, but how true is that statement?

    Ruby Vee replied to RN-dancer's topic in General Nursing

    It means it's a tough gig. It's also a way to brag about your job. "If I can work here, I can work anywhere" means I must be a pretty great nurse. Perhaps; perhaps
  5. Ruby Vee

    Work stress: where do you find support?

    Ruby Vee replied to CaffeinePOQ4HPRN's topic in General Nursing

    I'm married now, to a fellow RN. We support each other. We encounter the same patients, so perhaps we have a unique situation re: HIPAA. But no one understands the pressures of nursing like a...
  6. Ruby Vee

    How much death do you see/ have you seen on the job?

    Ruby Vee replied to CaffeinePOQ4HPRN's topic in General Nursing

    After 30+ years in ICU, I realize that there are worse things than death and I've seen many of them. Sometimes, death is a sweet release and something to rejoice. Early in my career, I worked...
  7. Ruby Vee

    when do you walk away

    Ruby Vee replied to RockiesRN3's topic in General Nursing

    I hated nursing in my first year, absolutely hated it. I dreamed of a 9-5 job, Monday through Friday with no working Christmas. I even went and got an MBA. To my very great surprise, when it came...
  8. Ruby Vee

    What makes one a "great nurse"?

    Ruby Vee replied to LadyAn's topic in General Nursing

    The best nurses know what they don't know and are always willing to learn something new. From anyone. You can learn good things from some folks and not so good things from others, but it's the rare...
  9. Ruby Vee

    Love my job but... opinions wanted

    Ruby Vee replied to tsm007's topic in General Nursing

    I agree -- don't worry about losing skills. They come back easily, and when you change jobs you'll have to learn new ones anyway. Skills are easy to learn. If you love your job and your coworkers,...
  10. Ruby Vee

    Two weeks notice

    Ruby Vee replied to superarn86's topic in General Nursing

    For the past twenty years, I've been required to give four weeks notice or more. I agree with the idea of not burning bridges. You don't want to find yourself blacklisted at every facility in the...
  11. Ruby Vee

    Compassion Fatigue

    Ruby Vee replied to Michelle Rhodes's topic in General Nursing

    What is your experience with burnout, and what do you do to alleviate
  12. Ruby Vee

    Do you ever want to escape nursing profession?

    Ruby Vee replied to thida's topic in General Nursing

    Please use the "Quote" function so we know to whom the question is
  13. Ruby Vee

    What's In A Name Badge?

    Ruby Vee replied to TruvyNurse's topic in Nursing Professionalism

    I worked in one hospital that put all of your educational credentials on your badge -- including my MBA, which had nothing to do with my job as an ICU nurse. The rare person who actually noticed it...
  14. Ruby Vee

    Bullying online is NOT harmless

    Ruby Vee replied to Dianna11's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    Quite possibly you've missed the
  15. Ruby Vee

    The dilemma of being put on-call

    Ruby Vee replied to mmc51264's topic in General Nursing

    Does your unit allow people to volunteer to be put on call? I've rarely worked anywhere that there weren't plenty of takers unless the low census drags on past the
  16. Ruby Vee

    8 vs 12 hour shift?

    Ruby Vee replied to RN-Doula's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    I've not seen a huge trend of hospitals changing back to 8 hour shifts, although it does seem to be a huge trend of nurses complaining about 12 hour shifts. In 1983, I participated in a pilot program...
  17. Ruby Vee

    Quitting job during orientation?

    Ruby Vee replied to angieRN528's topic in General Nursing

    Although most managers are reluctant to let new grads to part time until they've been on the unit for at least a year. They figure they're just not in a position to learn everything they need to...
  18. Ruby Vee

    Quitting job during orientation?

    Ruby Vee replied to angieRN528's topic in General Nursing

    You don't say how long you've been a nurse. Leaving two jobs in four years is one thing; leaving two jobs in four months is quite another. You will probably need the Med/Surg position to acquire...
  19. Ruby Vee

    Least stressful nursing specialty

    Ruby Vee replied to Svkd's topic in General Nursing

    That depends upon YOU. What I think is stressful may be easy for you, and the opposite may be true. Lots of people love home health nursing. I had several bad experiences with it in school and hope...
  20. Ruby Vee

    Feel like I'm too dumb to be a nurse

    Ruby Vee replied to coconut3431's topic in General Nursing

    I'm not sure why you're thinking of quitting your job. Did you think that you would come into nursing automatically knowing everything you need to know to safely care for your patients? It takes...
  21. Ruby Vee

    Nursing in crisis

    Ruby Vee replied to historylady's topic in General Nursing

    Nursing has always had ups and downs. The nurses who graduated 1-2 years before me had to take whatever they could get. When I graduated, I had five offers from two interviews. A few years later,...
  22. Ruby Vee

    Resigning: Counter Offer Advice?

    Ruby Vee replied to RG-RN2014's topic in General Nursing

    Were the previous transfer inquiries within the allowed timeframe for a transfer? If you inquired before you were eligible for transfer, perhaps that's why the previous inquiries were circular filed....
  23. Ruby Vee

    Never chart this

    Ruby Vee replied to Emergent's topic in General Nursing

    And I wonder how it plays in
  24. Ruby Vee

    Never chart this

    Ruby Vee replied to Emergent's topic in General Nursing

    Probably not kosher. Although I did chart once that "Patient confused; attempting to converse with Alaris pump. States "That uppity bastard won't even talk to me." Strangely, my manager had some...
  25. Ruby Vee

    Controversial Patient Odors in Nursing

    Ruby Vee replied to TheCommuter's topic in General Nursing

    I want to know where you work! My mother (in Wisconsin) and mother-in-law (in Massachusetts) get weekly showers unless we wish to pay extra for a second shower every week. Or unless they make a really...