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

    I don't want to be a CNA anymore.

    VivaLasViejas replied to Ms. Nurse Assistant's topic in General Nursing

    :lol2:
  2. VivaLasViejas

    I don't want to be a CNA anymore.

    VivaLasViejas replied to Ms. Nurse Assistant's topic in General Nursing

    I've worked LTC in many capacities---as an aide, as a student, as a volunteer, as an RN, and as a manager. I've also worked all three shifts. And I have NEVER awakened and dressed residents at 0330,...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    Cathether Bag question

    VivaLasViejas replied to pat8585's topic in General Nursing

    The only "stupid" question is the one you don't ask.:wink2: What was said earlier is true: a catheter should never be unhooked from the Y-connection---it's supposed to remain sterile, and the only way...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    How long did you take off work post cholesystectomy

    VivaLasViejas replied to madwife2002's topic in General Nursing

    I was out in the yard pulling weeds four days after my lap chole, and went back to work on a med/surg floor within a week of the surgery. Looking back, I realize I probably shouldn't have---I...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Common Sense Nursing?

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in General Nursing

    Last night I floated to the OB-GYN floor, as I often do, and walked right into a near-disaster: a suddenly obtunded 29 year-old vag hyst patient with a respiratory rate of 7 and 02 sats in the upper...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    I don't want to be a CNA anymore.

    VivaLasViejas replied to Ms. Nurse Assistant's topic in General Nursing

    CNAs are NOT helpless, especially not in contrast to the frail elderly and disabled under their care. No matter where a CNA works, s/he can always choose to leave and go to another facility if the...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    Doctor Practices that Dump Patients

    VivaLasViejas replied to FireStarterRN's topic in General Nursing

    I'm seeing this happen with disturbing frequency in my neck of the woods. Frankly, I don't blame doctors for "firing" rude patients. Like Tweety, I should be so lucky---I can think of a couple of...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Common Sense Nursing?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    :hhmth::imdbb::hpygrp::trc:
  9. VivaLasViejas

    I don't want to be a CNA anymore.

    VivaLasViejas replied to Ms. Nurse Assistant's topic in General Nursing

    "Luck" has nothing to do with it. Taking responsibility for one's actions and learning from mistakes is what carries a person through when the going gets tough. Almost every worker will, in his or her...
  10. VivaLasViejas

    Common Sense Nursing?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    Ha, ha Leslie!! This is an ooooooooold thread (from 5 years ago) and many things have changed, so please take that into consideration when you post. Thank you. BTW, the av is Catherine Zeta-Jones,...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Hoodia for Weight Loss?

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in Health, Stress Management

    Have any of you tried this yet? I just dropped $35 at Costco for a bottle of this stuff, which a couple of my co-workers are using for appetite control and weight loss. One of them has lost 79 pounds...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Nursing Home regulations State-by-State

    VivaLasViejas replied to Simplepleasures's topic in Patient Safety Issues

    Excellent! Consider this
  13. VivaLasViejas

    Question for Nurse Managers

    VivaLasViejas replied to glamgalRN's topic in Nurse Management

    If I'm interviewing a good candidate and they let me know up front that they have a prior engagement, I have no problem working around that. They can't use accrued vacation time until they've been...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Bad shift, need a pick me up.

    VivaLasViejas replied to RNcDreams's topic in General Nursing

    What you did was survive a brutal shift that NO nurse (or patient, for that matter!) should be put through. Unfortunately, this happens every day in America because so many hospitals have sacrificed...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Hoodia for Weight Loss?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in Health, Stress Management

    I did have some pretty significant palpitations, which I wonder about because I'd never had ones before that made me feel woozy. That was one of the reasons I quit taking the hoodia, although I didn't...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Fat People Save Healthcare Dollars

    VivaLasViejas replied to canoehead's topic in General Nursing

    Mark Twain put it this way: "There are three kinds of lies---lies, damned lies, and statistics." I'm not sure exactly which category this particular study falls into, but as a woman of size myself, I...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Hi, I'm Marla and I'm an Alcoholic

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in Nurses Recovery

    Awwwwwww.......shucks, I'm speechless! (for once LOL) Thanks to all of
  18. VivaLasViejas

    Residents who pull their call light for the sake of it

    VivaLasViejas replied to Ms. Nurse Assistant's topic in General Nursing

    This is very true. And there are those people who literally can't go more than an hour or two without feeling they have to void.....a significant number of them elderly ladies who have borne many...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    More sick calls on Superbowl Sunday? (Why was I not surprised to get a call?)

    VivaLasViejas replied to FireStarterRN's topic in General Nursing

    I didn't have a dog in this fight, but I have to admit it was highly satisfying to see Bill Belicheat and the Patriots
  20. VivaLasViejas

    More sick calls on Superbowl Sunday? (Why was I not surprised to get a call?)

    VivaLasViejas replied to FireStarterRN's topic in General Nursing

    The one night in six months that I stay up past midnight, and then I get a call at 0430 this morning telling me the dayshift med aide is sick and neither of the other two are answering their phones....
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Clinton Health Plan May Tap Pay

    VivaLasViejas replied to Jolie's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    Another reason not to vote for Hillary..........I'm all for universal health coverage, but not if we're going to have the Nanny State robbing us of 25% of our paycheck if we cannot afford to buy...
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Inspiring video for LTC Nurses and others- "Parent's Wish"

    VivaLasViejas replied to Valerie Salva's topic in General Nursing

    `snif` That was beautiful..........I'm wiping away tears as I'm typing this. I work with the elderly and love them dearly, so this is particularly meaningful for me. Think I'll share it with my staff...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    What does it mean to be a professional nurse?

    VivaLasViejas replied to meme75's topic in General Nursing

    Some consider the BSN to be a "professional" nurse, while an ADN is supposedly a "technical" nurse. Personally, as an ADN I consider myself to be every bit as much of a professional as any nurse. At...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Hi, I'm Marla and I'm an Alcoholic

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in Nurses Recovery

    Works for
  25. VivaLasViejas

    Hi, I'm Marla and I'm an Alcoholic

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in Nurses Recovery

    Yes, my friends here are THE