Ruby Vee BSN

CCU, SICU, CVSICU, Precepting & Teaching

Original Member of the Crusty Old Bat Society

Member

All Content by Ruby Vee

  1. Ruby Vee

    How Much More Can Nurses Take?

    Ruby Vee replied to Erin Lee's topic in Nursing News

    In my 40+ years of nursing, I've been threatened with guns, knives, a machete, scissors, a "police dog," and one guy threatened to "cut off your tits" with a plastic knife. I've been spat on,...
  2. Ruby Vee

    Best Scrub Brand and Shoes for New Grads

    Ruby Vee replied to Smwill2901's topic in Scrubs, Uniforms, Gear

    Scrubs I don't know about -- my employers have mandated where we must order our scrubs from, what style and color we can wear, etc. Good luck if you have an employer like that . . . they are never...
  3. Ruby Vee

    Calling off. When is it too much?

    Ruby Vee replied to Steven Porter's topic in Nursing Career

    Do you come off as an unreliable employee? Probably. One of the beauties of nursing is that you can schedule your movers to come on a weekday (it's cheaper!), request a day off weeks in advance, or...
  4. Ruby Vee

    Sexism in Advanced Practice?

    Ruby Vee replied to adventure_rn's topic in Nurse Practitioners, NP

    And I would think they'd be less sensitized to it than us crusty old bats who fought for the ERA . . . remember that? Newer nurses today will often preface a statement by saying, "I'm not a...
  5. Ruby Vee

    Sexism in Advanced Practice?

    Ruby Vee replied to adventure_rn's topic in Nurse Practitioners, NP

    I think we understood exactly what you meant. "Be quiet; you're just a nurse. And an old one at
  6. Ruby Vee

    Sexism in Advanced Practice?

    Ruby Vee replied to adventure_rn's topic in Nurse Practitioners, NP

    I distinctly felt that vibe. Thanks for saying
  7. Ruby Vee

    Sexism in Advanced Practice?

    Ruby Vee replied to adventure_rn's topic in Nurse Practitioners, NP

    I have never been an NP, but I've been an RN since the late 70s. I have experienced a LOT of sexism in nursing. One would think it would have gotten better over the decades, and it has, to some...
  8. Ruby Vee

    Made a huge mistake as a new grad

    Ruby Vee replied to Peaceofnurse's topic in General Nursing

    At my last job, management (our nurse manager) made rounds in the morning at 10am with her boss and her boss's boss. The patient was scrutinized for things like central line dressing integrity, date,...
  9. Ruby Vee

    Made a huge mistake as a new grad

    Ruby Vee replied to Peaceofnurse's topic in General Nursing

    I disagree. I think it was a nice thing to do -- she had to report the infiltration. It was nice to give the coworker a head's up rather than letting management blindside
  10. Ruby Vee

    Is my supervisor trying to set me up?

    Ruby Vee replied to Revolutionaryroad's topic in General Nursing

    Years ago, when I was a floor nurse in a famous New England teaching hospital, I was asked to float to CCU to do charge. I was told there were some "really good travelers and floats" on shift, but...
  11. Ruby Vee

    Made a huge mistake as a new grad

    Ruby Vee replied to Peaceofnurse's topic in General Nursing

    At least it wasn't an infusion of chemotherapy. I did that once, back in 1980 when working on a heme/oncology floor before I went into ICU. I did get talked to by management, written up and got some...
  12. Ruby Vee

    I need your advice/opinion desperately

    Ruby Vee replied to throwaway1's topic in General Nursing

    I've never been regarded as the nicest nurse on staff, but as a Crusty Old Bat with over 40 years of critical care experience, my advice is this: People who fire you generally are just angry and...
  13. Ruby Vee

    Why are ICU nurses so rude?

    Ruby Vee replied to wanderlustRN24's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    I was responding to the post I quoted. The person implied that caring for two critically ill ICU patients was less work or less stressful or less something than caring for 6 floor patients. I...
  14. Ruby Vee

    Why do I struggle more with younger nurses than older crusty nurses?

    Ruby Vee replied to Nurse Beth's topic in Career Advice Column

    I am a proud founding member of the "Crusty Old Bat" Society that was once (and may still be) active on Allnurses.com. It may have originally been a derogatory term, but it is now a badge of honor...
  15. Ruby Vee

    Why are ICU nurses so rude?

    Ruby Vee replied to wanderlustRN24's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    "Quick to judge" anyone? Have you ever *tried* taking care of two critically ill ICU patients? Honestly, I had more downtime taking care of 15 floor patients. As an ICU nurse, when a sick...
  16. Ruby Vee

    If There Was A Major Epidemic / Pandemic Would You Report For Duty?

    Ruby Vee replied to DoGoodThenGo's topic in General Nursing

    The question was posed 12 years ago. I guess by now we all know what we would do if there was a pandemic. I, too went to
  17. Ruby Vee

    I Should Have Left The First Time He Knocked Me Down

    Ruby Vee posted a topic in General Nursing

    It's October, Domestic Violence Awareness Month. About seven and a half years ago, or maybe a little more, my husband knocked me down for the very first time. I had just begun to identify his...
  18. Ruby Vee

    I Should Have Left The First Time He Knocked Me Down

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

    Thank you Dianah and Bella's
  19. Ruby Vee

    Calling all crusty old bats ‘?

    Ruby Vee replied to hppygr8ful's topic in Crusty Old Bats's Chatter

    Ruby Vee is pushing 70 and officially retired (again). I don't check in much, but it's October . . . Domestic Violence awareness month. I remember an exodus — I don't know how "mass" it was...
  20. Ruby Vee

    "Older" nurses and 12 hour shifts

    Ruby Vee replied to MQ Edna's topic in General Nursing

    I'm 69 — Still loved 12 hour shifts even after my bilateral knee replacements. Although I did choose to work nights at first because there were more opportunities to sit
  21. Ruby Vee

    Mispronunciations That Drive You Nuts

    Ruby Vee replied to ixchel's topic in General Nursing

    Had a patient keep asking for a peecan one Thanksgiving. Physician brought him a slice of pecan pie from the nurse's potluck. What the patient WANTED was a
  22. Ruby Vee

    Is this New Grad Residency Program...normal?

    Ruby Vee replied to NewGradNurze's topic in Nurse Residency Programs

    My favorite shift was . . . rotating. There are plusses to working day shift — you're on the same shift as the rest of the world. You get to learn more, because you're around when the cardiology...
  23. Ruby Vee

    Is nursing burn out really that bad?

    Ruby Vee replied to nursingcand's topic in General Nursing

    Understaffing seems to go in cycles -- but the pandemic may have skewed the cycles. It also seems to be somewhat facility-related. I've had jobs that were chronically understaffed, and others that...
  24. Ruby Vee

    Crusty Old Bats

    Ruby Vee replied to Been there,done that's topic in General Nursing

    When I first started nursing back in the 70s, the Crusty Old Bats were discussing cleaning and sharpening their own hypodermic needles after giving an injection. We didn't have unit dose, so we...
  25. Ruby Vee

    Patients Filming You

    Ruby Vee replied to Anonymous666's topic in General Nursing

    I went to great lengths to hide from the ex-husband who tried to murder me. I moved a few thousand miles, changed my last name AND my first name and educated my family about NOT giving out any...