Meriwhen ASN, BSN, MSN, RN

Psych ICU, addictions

Member

All Content by Meriwhen

  1. Meriwhen

    No light duty for RN's in my hospital - is this typical?

    Meriwhen replied to srleslie's topic in General Nursing

    Going on "light duty" in all of the facilities that I've worked at meant that you were taken entirely off of the floor and placed somewhere in a administrative capacity: unit clerk, staffing...
  2. Meriwhen

    reciprocity from cali to VA (foreign graduate)

    Meriwhen replied to pilyoRN's topic in Nurse Registration

    To be honest, only the VA BON can answer with certainty any questions about licensure. Virginia Board of Nursing OP: to help avoid any potential problems, you should begin the application process as...
  3. Meriwhen

    Help New grad looking for a job

    Meriwhen replied to boricualuv4ever's topic in First Year After Licensure

    You are in a bad job market, and while you may find it difficult to locate for many reasons, it unfortunately may also be one of the few viable options. The other option is to look outside of NYC at...
  4. Meriwhen

    Liability of teaching an outside nurse

    Meriwhen replied to Blindsided's topic in General Nursing

    IMO you are not teaching a nurse: you are teaching a family member who just happens to be a nurse. Safest thing to so is as netglow suggested: act as though she's not a nurse and teach it exactly...
  5. Meriwhen

    LVN Advice

    Meriwhen replied to thunderstruck1397's topic in California Nursing

    Stay in Kaiser while you're working on your BSN. This will make you an internal candidate when you graduate and look for RN jobs...and while being internal is no longer a guaranteed lock of getting a...
  6. Meriwhen

    Making a decision

    Meriwhen replied to terry45's topic in California Nursing

    Agree with this. Since you've listed two very different locales in CA, it doesn't appear that you have a preference, or are planning to move to a specific area. So see whatever job you can land and...
  7. Meriwhen

    Moved to CA from WA having trouble finding job

    Meriwhen replied to reets's topic in California Nursing

    It's so bad out here that the standard 1 year of experience won't cut it in many facilities. I've been telling people that when possible, not to come out here unless they have at least 2 years under...
  8. Meriwhen

    Have you ever witnessed this situation?

    Meriwhen replied to RNewbie's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    That is the fault of the pharmacist, and all it would take is a simple "can you please talk quietly?" request from the customer to reel them in. That's what I've done whenever I felt that was...
  9. Meriwhen

    Have you ever witnessed this situation?

    Meriwhen replied to RNewbie's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    My pharmacy has signs stating that they cannot guarantee auditory privacy at the pharmacy counters. The same sign also states that if privacy is desired for the patient to ask to speak to the...
  10. Meriwhen

    Not sure what to do with an issue I have with my supervisor.

    Meriwhen replied to afarmer's topic in First Year After Licensure

    The fact that you two started at the same time doesn't mean that the other new grad doesn't have skills/abilities/certifications/prior healthcare experience that you are not aware of, or that their...
  11. Meriwhen

    Flirty co-workers

    Meriwhen replied to rivershark2005's topic in Medical Assistant, CNA/MA

    Hence my warning about not flirting back, even if you feel it's innocent. I say this with the utmost kindness...but because you are a man, you will be stereotyped: more often the not the male will be...
  12. Meriwhen

    Resume and Cover letter review for (old) new grad lpn.

    Meriwhen replied to jagged777's topic in Job Search, Interview, Resume

    I agree. The fact that you are currently pursuing a bachelor's in another field and not nursing suggests to the interviewer that you're not really interested in nursing, and it doesn't make you look...
  13. Meriwhen

    benadryl inj, in anaphylaptic shock?

    Meriwhen replied to 7feetunder's topic in Emergency

    I didn't until I started nursing school...and even then, I didn't actually encounter the IM version until I started working. Also, depending on the country that he/she lives in, it may not be used...
  14. Meriwhen

    Anyone here do in-house registry/float pool/PRN?

    Meriwhen replied to Joe NightingMale's topic in Nursing Career

    PRN. I officially belong to the budget of one psych unit, but can float to a variety of units/programs. In my facility, the assumption is that if you are hired as a PRN you are capable (or better...
  15. Meriwhen

    Words and phrases that I didn't know before I became a psych nurse

    Meriwhen replied to Kay28's topic in Psychiatric

    5150 (for those not in CA, that's an involuntary psychiatric hold). I only need to hear/say those four numbers and we all know what to expect for this patient's
  16. Meriwhen

    Is an online BSN degree frowned upon by employers?

    Meriwhen replied to live&love&heal's topic in Online Distance Learning

    Quick disclaimer: it only costs that little if you have ALL pre-requisite classes completed. Ask me how I know Though even with the pre-reqs that I did have to take with them, my total UTA tuition...
  17. Meriwhen

    Polite Way to Turn Down a Job?

    Meriwhen replied to westieluv's topic in Nursing Professionalism

    Because it's the obvious answer that always eludes us. If it were me, I probably would have wondered what to say as well :) Congrats on the new
  18. Meriwhen

    Following up!

    Meriwhen replied to itsmee's topic in Job Search, Interview, Resume

    I usually say something like, "I just wanted to follow up on my application/interview and to find out if you needed any more information." At least that gives me a purpose for calling. Maybe a...
  19. Meriwhen

    Giving up on California

    Meriwhen replied to ercastro2's topic in California Nursing

    I got lucky: I'm a certified psych nurse, and we're always in demand :) But yeah, the market is pretty bad for a lot of the specialties, and even more so for the new grads. The more experience you...
  20. Meriwhen

    Need help please...

    Meriwhen replied to sistasoul's topic in General Nursing

    Many facilities prefer to follow a policy of "only dates and rehire status" to make their lives easier and avoid possible slander/libel suits. But Roser13 and Commuter are correct: employers may say...
  21. Meriwhen

    Flirty co-workers

    Meriwhen replied to rivershark2005's topic in Medical Assistant, CNA/MA

    1. Tell them that your personal policy is never to date people that you work with. Repeat as needed. Stay as professional as possible about it. If they start making things too uncomfortable for...
  22. Meriwhen

    Student loans: Another cautionary tale

    Meriwhen replied to chuckster's topic in General Students

    Did it once for the undergraduate degree...took me 11 years to pay off and I vowed never to do it again. The ADN is and BSN will be paid in full before I graduate. I've already started a savings...
  23. Meriwhen

    New Grad just hired, need help stat!

    Meriwhen replied to FloatDaddy's topic in Nursing Career

    Where I used to live (moderate cost of living), that hourly rate beats the hospital's starting salary PLUS diff hourly rate for new grads. Not saying you don't have a right to be disappointed...but...
  24. Meriwhen

    Big omission on a resume how to fix

    Meriwhen replied to Kitty Hawk's topic in General Nursing

    And should it come up, here is a good stock answer: "I have updated my resume and wanted to make sure you had the most recent version." That's all you need to
  25. Meriwhen

    Am I able to get CNA with Juvenile misdemeanor sex offense?

    Meriwhen replied to ccarlso9's topic in Licensure: Criminal History

    To be honest, the only one who can answer that question is the VA BON. You can ask them--do it by an anonymous e-mail if you prefer--and see what they say. However, keep in mind that most BONs will...