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

    If I Murder A Co-worker, How To Hide The Body??

    VivaLasViejas replied to walk6miles's topic in General Nursing

    **snort**
  2. VivaLasViejas

    Pet Peeve: Poor Grammar by Nurses

    VivaLasViejas replied to FireStarterRN's topic in General Nursing

    Okay, I've resisted this thread for a long time, but now I've got to jump in. Speling and grammer has bin a point of pride for me sence I wuz 4 yeerz old. I wuns new a nurse who cudnt spel "cat"---she...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    Doing the Happy Dance!!!

    VivaLasViejas replied to Tweety's topic in Online Distance Learning

    tweets~to say that i'm proud of you would be the understatement of the year!! wooooooooooooot!!!!!!!!!!! you are an inspiration to us all, including this midlifer who still hasn't managed to find the...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Pureed Sweet & Sour Pork and other Reflections on LTC

    VivaLasViejas replied to SuesquatchRN's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    This is exactly what I do with my confused folks. It's so much easier on all concerned if we just enter their reality, rather than try to force ours on them. Just this past week I had a fairly long...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Pureed Sweet & Sour Pork and other Reflections on LTC

    VivaLasViejas replied to SuesquatchRN's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    Sue~ I hear you! I've worked in geriatrics for most of my career, and all I can say is, please GOD don't let anyone do these things to me when it's my turn!! I just want to fade away into oblivion...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    More Than a Prayer for Single Payer

    VivaLasViejas replied to HM2VikingRN's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    Huh?
  7. VivaLasViejas

    Poverty to Prosperity......

    VivaLasViejas replied to HM2VikingRN's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    The reality is, SOMEBODY is going to be on the bottom rung of the economic ladder, no matter what we do or don't do. Not everyone can earn $20 an hour or more; if tomorrow that became the norm, prices...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Top 40 reasons to be a nurse.

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

    I love
  9. VivaLasViejas

    Poverty to Prosperity......

    VivaLasViejas replied to HM2VikingRN's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    :up::yeahthat:
  10. VivaLasViejas

    Disrespect

    VivaLasViejas replied to Wife of Spinner's topic in General Nursing

    Perhaps it would be more helpful to everyone concerned to avoid broad generalizations, and instead focus on the individual nurses who are giving you problems.:) I've been on both sides of this fence,...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Best Scrubs for Fatties

    VivaLasViejas replied to peds4now's topic in General Nursing

    I would kill to weigh 148 pounds again!! Well, I wouldn't really kill, but I'd do almost anything else if it meant I could once again fit into the OP's definition of...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Suspect HH patient is using marijuana!

    VivaLasViejas replied to Elektra6's topic in Home Health

    A while back there was another thread on this same subject that got very heated. I hope everyone will be respectful and non-judgmental in their responses to the OP. That said, I do not believe that...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    Miserable Patient

    VivaLasViejas replied to hemome79's topic in General Nursing

    What Tweety said. I might add that it helps to think about WHY this patient is so miserable. He may have had a hard life and is having an even harder old age. He may be in a lot of physical and...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    What are the best BLACK PENS

    VivaLasViejas replied to dark10gable's topic in General Students

    Why, allnurses.com pens, of course! I'm serious. I use mine all the time. They've got a great comfort grip, and the ink is a really bold black that ALWAYS photocopies well. Order some today---you'll...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Can a white student get a minority scholarship?

    VivaLasViejas replied to HogNurse's topic in Post Graduate Students

    I was a welfare mom myself, so I had to do nursing school the hard way too.........worked part-time and took out lots of loans, which I'm STILL paying to this very day. It was worth it, though. Hang...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Can a white student get a minority scholarship?

    VivaLasViejas replied to HogNurse's topic in Post Graduate Students

    This falls under what I call the "just-because-it-can-be-done-doesn't-mean-it-SHOULD-be-done" category. Personally, I can't even imagine asking for a minority scholarship under these circumstances. It...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Cellulitis and spider bites

    VivaLasViejas replied to nursekatie22's topic in Medical-Surgical

    Me too, Dutch............I mean I really, really, REALLY hate spiders!! I can hardly bear to watch that one crawling across the screen!!!!!!!! I'm not phobic about many things---enclosed spaces and...
  18. VivaLasViejas

    Cellulitis and spider bites

    VivaLasViejas replied to nursekatie22's topic in Medical-Surgical

    Caution: what appears as cellulitis from 'spider bites' can often be MRSA, especially in younger adults with questionable hygiene and a drug habit (e.g. meth use). I've seen too many cases where...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    I don't feel like I'll ever know enough

    VivaLasViejas replied to SuesquatchRN's topic in General Nursing

    I've been at it for over a decade now, and while I think I'm pretty good at what I do, I KNOW I'll never have this job completely 'down pat'. There is no such thing in nursing---change happens all the...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    Anyone here drink a can of soda a day?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Galvatron1's topic in General Nursing

    With rare exceptions---such as when it was the only cold drink available---I haven't drunk regular soda in 20 years. I don't like it, it's much too sweet, and I'm with Steph: I HATE the feeling all...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    DNSs

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

    I've found that each DNS (who lasts any length of time, that is!) tends to set the standard in a facility; unfortunately for the person who replaces them, you're walking into an established workplace...
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Anyone here drink a can of soda a day?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Galvatron1's topic in General Nursing

    Yanno, I recently cut way back on my Diet Coke habit, only because I got tired of the expense and because my stomach likes me better when I don't have one every day. Now that the food police are after...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    Quick ? about IDDM

    VivaLasViejas replied to SCmomof3's topic in Diabetes, Endocrine Nursing

    Short answer: I'd want to see that acidosis corrected first---the blood-sugar level, while far from optimal, isn't critical, but that pH certainly
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Epidemic of dumb!

    VivaLasViejas replied to 33-weeker's topic in Ob/Gyn

    As the saying goes: we already have a fountain of youth. What we need is a fountain of
  25. VivaLasViejas

    COPD'ers and anxiety

    VivaLasViejas replied to Creamsoda's topic in MICU, SICU

    I know COPD patients are difficult to cope with. It helps if you try to understand a little of what makes them that way. First of all, air hunger---the sensation of being unable to get sufficient air...