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

    Roll Call - Who's Been Around the Longest and Your Accomplishments

    VivaLasViejas replied to traumaRUs's topic in General Nursing

    I've been at AN for 16 years. I was a moderator for six and have been a Guide for seven. I have 21 years in nursing, 25 total in health care including being a CNA and going to nursing school. I think...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    Memphis RN wears violently racist t-shirt to polling place when voting on Tuesday

    VivaLasViejas replied to klone's topic in Nursing News

    Ugh. That shirt is disgusting. Where I come from, you can't wear or take anything into a voting area that's politically oriented. I wonder why Mississippi allows it. I'm all for freedom of speech, but...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    How can I get back to nursing?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Marixa2013's topic in Nurse Disabilities

    Welcome to Allnurses. We're glad you're here! You have my sympathies. I battle mental illness myself and went through a lot of jobs before going on disability three years ago. I'd leave one job...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Loss of identity as nurse?

    VivaLasViejas replied to VA2AK's topic in General Nursing

    Hi there. You have my sympathies, because I'm in a similar situation being on SSDI for bipolar I. I miss nursing and wish I could go back, but I can't and nothing I do will change that. I still hold a...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Afraid to see a therapist

    VivaLasViejas replied to NewRN'16's topic in General Nursing

    Getting therapy and/or taking meds for mental illness won't jeopardize your license. In a few states, nurses might have to go through a monitoring program, but about the only way the BON finds out...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    Rn dealing with own family member illness.

    VivaLasViejas replied to captainRN1's topic in General Nursing

    I had a response all prepared, but previous posters said it all so I won't try to upstage their comments. Just know that I've been there, with my husband who was dying from pancreatic cancer, and I...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    The 'Q' Word During a Full Moon

    VivaLasViejas replied to Joe V's topic in General Nursing

    I learned early on in my med/surg CNA career that mentioning the full moon or uttering the Q word was a recipe for disaster. It was always the worst during the full-moon summer weekends...I called it...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    An lpn with no desire to work in the hospital.should I get my rn?

    VivaLasViejas replied to LPNTORN704's topic in General Nursing

    Even with an associate's degree, you'd have more flexibility and job opportunities than you would if you stayed an LPN. Not that LPNs aren't important---they are!---but there's just more to choose...
  9. VivaLasViejas

    Support myself PRN?

    VivaLasViejas replied to mary.lentz17's topic in General Nursing

    I feel you, dear lady. My husband was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July 2013 while I was trying to work full-time, and I ended up having to take a lot of time off for his doctor and chemo...
  10. VivaLasViejas

    Politics in the Nursing Work Place: When Conflicts Arise

    VivaLasViejas replied to jeastridge's topic in General Nursing

    I come from a generation that was taught not to discuss politics, religion, or money in polite company. I consider the workplace to be "polite company" and wish everyone else did too. It makes life...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Struggling, am I a crappy nurse?

    VivaLasViejas replied to TexasmedicRN's topic in General Nursing

    One time while I was working LTC, we had a rash of deaths on my shift over a period of several weeks. It was a bad flu season that year, and so many of our residents caught it and developed pneumonia...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Unsure if this is right for me...

    VivaLasViejas replied to hannahkathy123's topic in Nursing Career

    Your workplace is a hellhole. It is definitely time to do something else. You may need to commute or even move for a better job opportunity, so you might think about doing it while you're still young...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    "You made a mistake."

    VivaLasViejas replied to CharleeFoxtrot's topic in General Nursing

    Looking at all the responses to this thread, I feel a little better about having that same dream of the neglected patient. I haven't worked in a hospital for over a decade, but I still have this...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    First patient lost

    VivaLasViejas replied to Udmert's topic in General Nursing

    The first death is always the hardest. You will be present at many of them, and some will hit you harder than others, but you never forget that first one. It takes time to process such an event,...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Writing Bad Orders

    VivaLasViejas replied to CapeCodMermaid's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    This is the sort of occurrence that makes me glad I left LTC and floor nursing behind five years ago. That order makes NO sense and it's dangerous to boot...too many things that can go sideways. Like...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Called In because my coworkers are complaining about me

    VivaLasViejas replied to nursinghopeful23's topic in Nursing Professionalism

    I once had something similar happen to me. My manager called me into the office to discuss complaints about my work, and when I asked my co-workers what I was doing (or not doing) that bothered them,...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Quiting without Notice Due to Poor Relationship with Physician

    VivaLasViejas replied to mallethead's topic in Patient Safety Issues

    Do not, I repeat, do NOT quit without notice. You never know if/when you'll need these people again. The nursing world is smaller than you think, and nurses who walk away from their jobs without...
  18. VivaLasViejas

    Nervous nurse's guide to ebb and flow enemas

    VivaLasViejas replied to JeneraterRN's topic in General Nursing

    I once took care of an elderly lady who required Harris flushes every single morning at 0900. Not 0859, not 0901, had to be right on the dot or she'd get mad and demand another nurse who could get...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    Vision in One Eye

    VivaLasViejas replied to Meow278's topic in Nurse Disabilities

    I'm legally blind in one eye and always have been. It never interfered with my ability to be a nurse, nor did anyone really notice it. You'll do
  20. VivaLasViejas

    I want to be a nurse but im not good at math

    VivaLasViejas replied to wizardwendy's topic in General Nursing

    When I was in high school, I stunk at math and did the minimum possible to graduate. I wanted to be a nurse even back then, but didn't think I had the smarts for it until much later in life. In...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Flu shot advice

    VivaLasViejas replied to bcm9579's topic in General Nursing

    This.
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Goodbye Dog Days and Hello Fall Benefits

    VivaLasViejas replied to J.Adderton's topic in General Nursing

    I love summer and live for it all year, but I find that the early fall gives me a burst of energy and I start "nesting"---I'm more of a fall cleaner than a spring cleaner. I like to decorate for the...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    What jobs are best for nurses with back issues?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Scarynurse's topic in General Nursing

    The first thing that comes to mind is a desk job of some kind. Fortunately, there is a wide variety of them, from case management/utilization review to MDS nurse to telephone advice. You are obviously...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    As a RN, which would you choose?

    VivaLasViejas replied to GenieToBe's topic in General Nursing

    I am a DNR and have documentation to that effect. If I'm not breathing and my heart has stopped, leave me alone. If I'm still alive, then go for it...but only if there's a reasonable chance I might...
  25. VivaLasViejas

    Wasting Witnesses?

    VivaLasViejas replied to learningandsearching's topic in General Nursing

    When I worked in assisted living, I usually wasted discontinued narcotics with one of the resident care coordinators, neither of whom was licensed or even certified as a CNA. There was no one else to...