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

    Protecting my license..

    VivaLasViejas replied to piglets2's topic in Patient Safety Issues

    You can never go wrong if you place your residents' safety and your nursing license above all else. That doesn't always equate with keeping one's job, or making the powers that be happy, or turning a...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    Am I Wrong?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    You make a very good point here, and I thank you! In Oregon ALFs, residents may keep meds in their rooms and self-administer them as long as a) there is an MD order that says they are competent to do...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    Am I Wrong?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    This is just getting better and better: I got a call from the PCP's office about two hours after hearing from the NP, and they were VERY happy to follow up with me and have us all be on the same page....
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Am I Wrong?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    I heard back from the NP a little while ago, and just as I suspected, she did NOT intend for all three sleepers, plus a sub-therapeutic dose of Remeron, to be given! She D/C'd the Ambien and the...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Am I Wrong?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    Thanks to all of you who have responded so far. I did fax the NP who ordered two of the medications to notify her that the resident is already on Ambien; next step will be talking to the physician...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    *koff* *gasp*

    VivaLasViejas replied to TazziRN's topic in General Nursing

    :rotfl: Reminds me of the time, now about 10 years ago, when my hubby and I watched Cheech and Chong's "Up in Smoke" with our then-adolescent daughters. We are, admittedly, part of the generation...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    *koff* *gasp*

    VivaLasViejas replied to TazziRN's topic in General Nursing

    LOL Marijuana tends to give people a raging case of the 'munchies'........after smoking it (or even inhaling it secondhand), they get hungry and start chomping on cereal, crackers, popcorn, nuts,...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Air Entry Assessment..

    VivaLasViejas replied to solumedrol's topic in General Nursing

    Yep.........I learn something new every day too. Thanks to our neighbor to the
  9. VivaLasViejas

    Advocacy and Caring..

    VivaLasViejas replied to solumedrol's topic in General Nursing

    Sorry you feel that way, but in the days before the Internet, we had to figure out our own
  10. VivaLasViejas

    do you know enough about MI symptoms?

    VivaLasViejas replied to diamondmeadows's topic in General Nursing

    OK, I won't tell you to go to the ER. I've been uninsured for much of this year myself, and I totally understand what it's like to know you have something that could be disastrous, yet be unable to...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Air Entry Assessment..

    VivaLasViejas replied to solumedrol's topic in General Nursing

    I've never heard it phrased that way either. I'm very familiar with most respiratory assessment terms, e.g. air exchange, breath sounds, incursion/excursion, inspiration/expiration but not 'air...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Is it just me, or are nurses pushy?

    VivaLasViejas replied to firstyearstudent's topic in General Nursing

    As always, Miranda, you have put a truth into words which I'm sure many of us feel, but do not or cannot articulate as well as you can. Some of you here know me far better than my vast range of...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    Is there power in the color white?

    VivaLasViejas replied to bbfw2's topic in General Nursing

    And mine went into the bonfire at our after-graduation party nine and a half years ago. Haven't worn whites since. They make me look like the Pillsbury Doughgirl.........hardly what I'd call a...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Advocacy and Caring..

    VivaLasViejas replied to solumedrol's topic in General Nursing

    These questions read like a nursing-school assignment.
  15. VivaLasViejas

    What Three Words....

    VivaLasViejas replied to UM Review RN's topic in General Nursing

    Compassionate, empathetic, willing to go the extra
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Experienced Nurses Only

    VivaLasViejas replied to RunningWithScissors's topic in General Nursing

    Can't we all just get along? I wonder sometimes what people who visit allnurses every now and then, without becoming members themselves, must think about us when we can't even agree on what...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    An ADN Degree is NOT a "2 year" Degree

    VivaLasViejas replied to West_Coast_Ken's topic in General Nursing

    Well, at risk of sounding like someone who's a little "slow", I'm going to confess that it took me a full FOUR YEARS to obtain my associate of applied science degree!! For one thing, I was an older...
  18. VivaLasViejas

    In Need of Serious Help

    VivaLasViejas replied to pnurseuwm's topic in Nursing Career

    First things first: You MUST get treatment for your depression! Nothing else in your life is going to work until you deal with this basic issue. Your employer may have an EAP (employee assistance...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    Counrtry doses

    VivaLasViejas replied to Bethy-lynn's topic in MICU, SICU

    "Country" doses? Never heard it called by that name.......but I have heard of practicing medicine without a license, and what they call THAT is trouble. Nope, I worked too long and hard for my RN...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    Deeply saddened.....

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

    FWIW, EVERY new nurse goes through an adjustment period, and it's rough......so many times what we learned in school turns out to have no practical application in the real world, and it's very easy to...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    What is your routine at an assisted living? Curious

    VivaLasViejas replied to Elektra6's topic in LPN, LVN Corner

    I'm a director of health services in an ALF, and I love it! The job description varies from place to place, and LPNs have a different role than an RN, but generally have much more autonomy in ALF than...
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Would becoming bilingual be useful in nursing?

    VivaLasViejas replied to one2one's topic in General Nursing

    That's the only thing I miss about hospital nursing..........I used to have the opportunity to speak Spanish almost every shift, but we have no Hispanic residents at my ALF and I'm getting rusty. I've...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    can i move it here?

    VivaLasViejas replied to RNOTODAY's topic in Operating Room

    We (the staff) would appreciate it if you would NOT post the same topic in multiple forums. Simply put, you can post one topic, in one thread, on one forum. If you're not sure exactly where a thread...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    No Warning from Admin About Pt Who Makes "Allegations"

    VivaLasViejas replied to Meerkat's topic in General Nursing

    This is a question that is, unfortunately beyond the scope of a nursing website. Please seek the advise of your institution's risk management specialist or a qualified legal expert. Thank you, and...
  25. VivaLasViejas

    med-surg vs other options

    VivaLasViejas replied to forest2525's topic in General Nursing

    I'm with most of the others here who advised you to give it more time. At four months in, you've barely gotten your feet wet..........I was a M/S nurse for five YEARS, and I still was nowhere near...