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

    Prescription fish oil? You have got to be kidding me!

    I've taken fish oil for about a year now, and it not only lowered my triglycerides by over 250 points, it's helped my arthritis as well. And yes, I do eat fish whenever I can, but the rest of my...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    VBAC for a Lady Who Has Had 2 Previous C-sections

    Only a generation ago, VBAC was common. I myself had one after 2 cesareans, and had no problems at all even though I was high risk (obesity + HTN)---labor lasted about 12 hours, and I had my son after...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    My age is showing, or 'No texting, please"

    Oh, I hate that!! I have the same problem, only it's not migraines, it's NOT wearing my glasses when I text. I don't know exactly why I think I can get away with it, but sometimes when I'm just too...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    The worst code you've seen?

    A 42-year-old man, husband and father of two little girls, who was a direct admit from his workplace after complaining of "a little chest pressure". Taking his medical history as I admitted him to our...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    SO am I the only one who loves LTC?

    I'm so glad to see other nurses who love LTC the way I do. I started out in nursing school intending to become a labor-and-delivery nurse, but fell in love with the old folks during my first semester...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    this hit too close to home...

    ((((((((Leslie)))))))) My prayers are with you and your loved ones as you face yet another extraordinarily difficult life challenge. You are strong, yes, but even the strongest woman has her...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    Describe the Ugliest Scrubs You Have Seen!

    Pink, gray, black and white camo scrubs.........looked like a cat that had been hosed down with Pepto-Bismol. Or a box of Good and Plenty
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Antipsychotics

    Yes, I find it exceedingly ironic that the folks who make the rules that force us to try to 'wean' people off antipsychotics are so far removed from the bedside that they have NO CLUE what we deal...
  9. VivaLasViejas

    Favorite Dr or Nurse Name

    Right here in my neck of the woods, there is an OB-GYN named Dr.
  10. Greetings! Many of you know that I have struggled for most of my life with compulsive eating and weight issues. I got my start way back in the 1960s, growing up with an overweight mother who watched...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    STNA's ... do you have to clean up a lot of poo-poo?

    Or thrown up on your head as you were tying their
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Nursey things that you'll NEVER say again.

    I've stopped saying to patients, "I know you're not hungry, but you need to eat". I used to be able to eat no matter whether I was hungry or not, but in the past year or so I've come to the point...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    STNA's ... do you have to clean up a lot of poo-poo?

    The nursing assistant position encompasses a number of tasks that aren't always in the job description, including housekeeping/janitorial duties, meal service, even answering the phones. For that...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Treated like crap

    I couldn't have said it better than bigbub did. Maybe it's age that's brought some perspective regarding interpersonal relationships, but I decided some time ago that I was an OK person, whether or...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Want to hear your pet peeves in LTC nursing

    Oh, don't get me started............ 1) I hate, hate, HATE intershift rivalries!!! LTC is a 24-hour business; if one shift can't get to it, the next ought to take care of it, and everybody just needs...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Can I sign off on my own immunizations?

    Being the only licensed nurse in some facilities, I've given myself flu shots and documented them in my own employee records. However, I wouldn't have done it with a TB test, UA, or any required...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    To be Salaried or Not.

    I've done both, and as far as I'm concerned, hourly is the only way to go. Every place I've ever been on salary, I worked 50+ hours a week, took work home with me, and/or was on-call 24/7. No thank...
  18. Just a friendly reminder: Every member of Allnurses has the right to post whatever he/she wants, as long as it is within our Terms of Service. Accordingly, every member is free to disagree with...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    Why hide barrier creams and/or skin preps?

    Confused residents are known to go through drawers and cupboards and consume whatever they find there, even if said drawers and cupboards don't happen to be their own. This is why it's NEVER a good...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    Medical Issues-Would Like Your Experiences-Not Advice

    I'm sorry, but no matter how you slice it, the original post is indeed a request for medical information that is best obtained from a qualified practitioner who knows the individual and his/her health...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Can family members work at the same unit?

    My son is one of the CNAs who work on my long-term care unit, and so far the arrangement is working for us, although it did get a little rocky for a while when one resident (who was a troublemaker...
  22. VivaLasViejas

    if your gonna make em up, at least let em be WNL

    I'm suspicious whenever a CNA's numbers are always even, or when they supposedly take BPs on 10 different people and all of them are in the same range. What gets me is that some apparently don't think...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    Does Death Have A Smell?

    After years in geriatric nursing, I can often smell death days before it happens. My olfactory system usually interprets it as a sickish, sweetish, sort of meaty odor---sort of like hamburger that's...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Oh the wonderful smells

    After sixteen years in this business, I'm so used to bad smells that I hardly notice 'em anymore. However, for those extra-odoriferous emanations, I keep a small jar of Mentholatum in my treatment...
  25. VivaLasViejas

    Retired nurses displacing new grads?

    Simple economics: Many older (50+) people are staying in the workforce because we can't afford to retire. I think most Baby Boomer nurses would love to at least throttle back a little and work 2 or 3...