Meriwhen ASN, BSN, MSN, RN

Psych ICU, addictions

Member

All Content by Meriwhen

  1. Meriwhen

    RN salary expectations

    Meriwhen replied to Ashtimus Prime's topic in General Nursing

    Depends on where you live. TX or Southern or Midwest US, you're doing pretty darn well for a new grad. But if that's your rate and you're in NY, CA, or any major metro area, you're getting screwed....
  2. Meriwhen

    Undocumented Patients

    Meriwhen replied to srercg6's topic in General Nursing

    Doesn't matter who they are--as long as they are here in the hospital and I'm assigned to them, they're my patient. They'd get the same level of care I give all my patients. As far as notifying INS...
  3. Meriwhen

    "Observed" urine drug screen

    Meriwhen replied to thisgirldrums's topic in General Nursing

    When I worked detox, I have had to witness patients giving urine samples. Too many of them try to rig or tamper with the test. The most common tampering attempt is with water...except that they...
  4. Meriwhen

    Two weeks notice

    Meriwhen replied to superarn86's topic in General Nursing

    And it's OK for you to feel mad about having to work--you're human. But sometimes you have to put your feelings away for a bit and do the right
  5. Meriwhen

    Don't write an order like this

    Meriwhen replied to Leonardo Del Toro's topic in General Nursing

    Well, a route would have been nice. But it's too confusing with all those 0.5s. Most likely, the nurse seeing all the 0.5s will think mg over tab, and end up giving the patient too
  6. Meriwhen

    You Know You're a Psych Nurse When . . . .

    Meriwhen replied to motor_mouth's topic in Psychiatric

    My guidelines for a good day in psych nursing are: 1. No one died 2. No codes (of any color) are called As long as those two guidelines are met, almost anything and everything else can happen, and...
  7. Meriwhen

    Two weeks notice

    Meriwhen replied to superarn86's topic in General Nursing

    True that. Even if your employer plays nice despite your calling out and doesn't disclose why you are a Do-Not-Rehire or even nicer, doesn't make you one...I wouldn't be surprised if you next...
  8. Meriwhen

    Two weeks notice

    Meriwhen replied to superarn86's topic in General Nursing

    Keep in mind that if you fail to work your two-week notice, you can be tagged as Do Not Rehire, which could haunt you when you apply for other jobs and list this one as a reference. Despite that...
  9. Meriwhen

    Negotiating years of experience

    Meriwhen replied to Montana29's topic in Collective Bargaining, Union

    When it comes to anything other than FT work, unions have a variety of formulas for computing what your experience level is. For example, in my facility, PT and PRN get their years of experience...
  10. Meriwhen

    Universal Health Services concerns

    Meriwhen replied to SunnyDay2day's topic in Psychiatric

    I would imagine they--like almost every single other facility out there: profit, non-profit, whatever--put their best foot forward when they know inspectors or accreditation committees are coming....
  11. Meriwhen

    Coworker to have me fired!

    Meriwhen replied to PsychRN16's topic in Psychiatric

    That's what I meant: at will. Thanks for the
  12. Meriwhen

    HELP! New Grad Travel Nursing

    Meriwhen replied to PeepoSoosh's topic in Travel

    IMO, this is a BAD IDEA. First, the facilities that you will be traveling to expect their travel nurses to hit the ground running, with minimal orientation. They do not have the time nor inclination...
  13. Meriwhen

    Legal liability in detox

    Meriwhen replied to Cookies17's topic in Addictions

    I'm not a lawyer so don't consider this gospel (and we can't give legal advice here at AN anyway), but I would also think that you'd be liable only if you gave him the inappropriate drug (wrong drug,...
  14. Meriwhen

    Psych nursing is easy

    Meriwhen replied to studentnurse9806's topic in Psychiatric

    Well, I guess not all of them are horrible. However, the negative things I've heard about most for-profit facilities outweigh the positive, so IMO, I'm wary of working for
  15. Meriwhen

    Coworker to have me fired!

    Meriwhen replied to PsychRN16's topic in Psychiatric

    So the way I read this: you had the med nurse administer a PRN so the patient could calm down and he could shower. But after the medication was given, the shower didn't happen for whatever reason....
  16. Meriwhen

    When your ex or their mistress/lover is the patient?

    Meriwhen replied to CaffeinePOQ4HPRN's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    My facility has this policy too. Now THIS, I've had happen twice...well, same two people (one inpatient, one outpatient), multiple visits. Each time, I notified/reminded my manager and the head of...
  17. Meriwhen

    Scripps New Grad Residency March/June 2017

    Meriwhen replied to onajourney's topic in California Nursing

    Scripps is pretty brutal about that cutoff too. It's very wise for job hunters to have everything they could possibly need already on their computers/online, so applying is a quick matter of click,...
  18. Meriwhen

    Gun Owning Nurses

    Meriwhen replied to hppygr8ful's topic in General Nursing

    No kidding. I've seen firsthand what they can do to a car. I wasn't in it at the time, but my parents were...fortunately, they walked away with minimal injury. Both the deer and car were totaled....
  19. Meriwhen

    Gun Owning Nurses

    Meriwhen replied to hppygr8ful's topic in General Nursing

    Well...I'm a nurse. I legally own firearms. So I'm not really bothered by the
  20. Meriwhen

    Nursing Boards control of Nurses

    Meriwhen replied to Cougar1113's topic in Nursing Professionalism

    And the sad part is that even if she takes the post down (and she probably has, I haven't checked the link), the damage has already been done and thanks to the enduring nature of the web, it will...
  21. Meriwhen

    I received an accusation on my license

    Meriwhen replied to sonyarn88's topic in Licensure: Criminal History

    Facilities don't take actions like this against employees just for fun. Something had to have happened to have seriously merited this. I'm not passing judgment either way, just pointing out that the...
  22. Meriwhen

    Can I become a CNA with theft charge?

    Meriwhen replied to Ang12345's topic in Licensure: Criminal History

    Possibly. Just because the BON may grant you a license with your criminal record doesn't mean that employers have to hire you. Unfortunately, anything related to theft shows that you are/have...
  23. Meriwhen

    What to do if you prick yourself with used needle?

    Meriwhen replied to xmilkncookiesx's topic in General Nursing

    1. Clean the wound thoroughly. 2. Report the stick to your charge/supervisor/manager. (You can do both 1 and 2 at the same time if necessary. But if you have to choose between the two, IMO clean...
  24. Meriwhen

    Terminated

    Meriwhen replied to sdugan07's topic in General Nursing

    THIS. Keep it objective, but make sure it has all the critical information. Do not presume that people will understand/infer something that you left out because you thought it was blatantly obvious...
  25. Meriwhen

    Terminated

    Meriwhen replied to sdugan07's topic in General Nursing

    You don't have to share any details you don't want--and honestly, it's a lot better for you if you don't. But at the same time, without details it's hard to judge whether your termination did have...