VivaLasViejas ASN, RN

LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych

Once a nurse, always a nurse!

Long Term Care Columnist / Guide

All Content by VivaLasViejas

  1. VivaLasViejas

    LTC.. will working here eventually help me in psych?

    VivaLasViejas replied to cherubhipster's topic in Psychiatric

    I would think LTC would be GREAT experience if you're wanting to get into psych.....sometimes the families have more issues than the residents!! Seriously, you will see just about every sort of...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    Stockholm Syndrome

    VivaLasViejas replied to tokebi's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    ADPIE nailed it! That's exactly the way I feel about leaving the residents where I last worked, and it still makes me sad even though I've been away long enough that they've probably forgotten about...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    Sketchers Shape Ups

    VivaLasViejas replied to NGeorgia's topic in Scrubs, Uniforms, Gear

    I love mine!! Would definitely buy another pair when these wear out, and I want to try the sandals
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Would you support this federal staffing bill?

    VivaLasViejas replied to herring_RN's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    (taking deeeep breath) As usual, I have to say NO to more government. It's got enough on its plate without getting into the business of staffing healthcare facilities. The main failing is that...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Help! Should I file for Unemployment???

    VivaLasViejas replied to JjoBsn's topic in General Nursing

    Absolutely, file for unemployment benefits. You may have to wait a few weeks for the Employment Division and your hospital to determine your eligibility, so file ASAP. If they want to fight it, an...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    tips for feeding a stroke patient?

    VivaLasViejas replied to tsweetie's topic in Medical Assistant, CNA/MA

    You may want to check with your facility's speech therapist again. They can try a drinkable puree diet with supplements, which may get more calories in and requires less energy on the part of the...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    Customer Service...........yay or nay?

    VivaLasViejas replied to eriksoln's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    I'm proud to say that in fifteen years of working in health care, I have never had a patient complaint. I merely use the Golden Rule in all my dealings with patients and families, and treat them the...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    When are you no longer a "new nurse"?

    VivaLasViejas replied to nursesaurus's topic in First Year After Licensure

    I dunno.........I felt like a relatively 'new' nurse until I passed the 10-year mark. Now I'm just a used
  9. VivaLasViejas

    I am an American.

    VivaLasViejas replied to UnionRN2's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    i'm going to have to ask everyone to play nice and stop the barbed comments. several people have complained, and it's questionable that this is even a useful conversation at this point. please...
  10. VivaLasViejas

    All out of........

    VivaLasViejas replied to snoopy29's topic in General Nursing

    I love
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Putting a mask on a spitter

    VivaLasViejas replied to NotFlo's topic in General Nursing

    Of course it is.......but you must not have worked in long-term care before, or you'd know that the State couldn't care less about the CNAs (or the nurses, for that matter). The only rights they're...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Vaginal Delivery May Be OK After C-Section

    VivaLasViejas replied to SmilingBluEyes's topic in Ob/Gyn

    I had a VBAC after TWO c/sections back in 1988, and I'm so glad I got to do it.....it was the easiest and best childbirth experience I ever had out of my five full-term deliveries. I never needed so...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    Osteoarthritis and floor work

    VivaLasViejas replied to dhammond3's topic in Nurse Disabilities

    Welcome to my world........I had arthroscopy and meniscectomy last month for severe OA of the left knee and am a LOT better (although now I want to get the right knee done because it hurts too). I'm...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Putting a mask on a spitter

    VivaLasViejas replied to NotFlo's topic in General Nursing

    This could indeed be considered abuse! The patient is in a nursing home, and putting a mask on her that she can't remove violates her dignity and her rights. I could see the State walking in and...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Grandma's Blood Pressure Low but getting bp meds?

    VivaLasViejas replied to sampaperplay's topic in General Nursing

    I'm sorry, but this is something you and/or your grandmother needs to discuss with her care provider, as it is beyond the scope of nursing practice to offer medical advice. Good luck to both of you,...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    What Next for an "old" nurse

    VivaLasViejas replied to lulu220's topic in General Nursing

    Hey, they don't seem to want old ADNs either, so we're definitely in the same boat. I'm 51 and coming off a knee surgery for osteoarthritis that effectively ended my floor nursing career. I'm trying...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Least favorite pre-req: Political Science

    VivaLasViejas replied to QuarterLife88's topic in Pre-Nursing Students

    I had a class that was called Science and Culture in the Western Tradition. It turned out to be eight weeks of long, boring videos featuring a narrator who spent most of the shows bashing the Catholic...
  18. VivaLasViejas

    Confess! Whats the craziest force of habit you've done in the "Real World"

    VivaLasViejas replied to vhern246's topic in Nursing Humor

    I've done the check-signing thing with "RN" on the end. Also used to sign some of my kids' school permission slips with it as well. I knock on ALL doors......even my own bathroom, which is used only...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    Stop #@$%!* Thief!!!

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in General Nursing

    This is one of the big headaches they never tell you about when you become a manager in a healthcare facility--what to do when residents' money and valuables go missing, and you come to the...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    OK, ummm............well...........

    VivaLasViejas replied to eriksoln's topic in General Nursing

    :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::rotfl: Dang........that's why I shouldn't be eating chips at the
  21. VivaLasViejas

    If you had to pick two careers/paid hobbies other than nursing...

    VivaLasViejas replied to AOx1's topic in General Nursing

    I'd be a writer and/or that woman who does all those Great Hotels gigs for the Travel Channel. What a
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Should I lighten up?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Scrubby's topic in General Nursing

    I can't add anything to what's already been said here, except that you are completely right in refusing to talk about your cases. It doesn't matter if your partner's friends think you're uptight;...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    Why aren't nursing homes doing 12 hour shifts???

    VivaLasViejas replied to GRAB1's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    That was the schedule I had in my last job, and it was perfect---I loved having 3 days off during the week, even if they weren't all consecutive days off, and I gladly sacrificed $$ to not have to...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    How useful is a MSN in LTC?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Mookiepsychnp's topic in LTC: Directors, Assistant

    To be honest, I've never even seen an MSN working in long-term care, and I've been at it for quite a while. In LTC there is a lot of responsibility even at the lower levels........LPNs are assessing...
  25. VivaLasViejas

    The right profession, or just bad examples?

    VivaLasViejas replied to kamaboko's topic in Oregon Nursing

    At my most recent workplace, the CNA instructor was fantastic---enthusiastic about what she was doing and communicated her excitement to her students. My son went through her class a year ago, and...