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

    Blemished background-sick days

    VivaLasViejas replied to TereseLPN's topic in Nursing Career

    I had a lot of health issues in my last job too (most of which, it turns out, were in fact CAUSED by the stress of the job), so you have my sympathies. The truth is, employers are generally prohibited...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    My friend is in trouble. Any diabetic nurse educators out there?

    VivaLasViejas replied to krisssy's topic in General Nursing

    As the saying goes: You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make him drink. Your friend undoubtedly knows the consequences of continuing to eat as she does. (Knowing and doing are two different...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    How long does it take to feel comfortable being a REAL nurse????

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

    I've been a nurse for almost nine years. I'll let you know when it happens for me. Actually, I'm just kidding.........but the truth is, the nurse who stays just a teensy bit nervous is almost always...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Ever have patients who are a little *too* honest?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Jo Dirt's topic in General Nursing

    Oh, the stories I can tell about dementia patients.......... In the first LTC where I worked, there was this one sweet little lady from Alabama, who had an accent so thick you could cut it with a...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    So, I had a bad day......

    VivaLasViejas replied to CardioTrans's topic in CCU, Coronary, Cardiac

    Oh, these are the stories that make my heart hurt....... I can't imagine being without my husband of TWENTY-five years.......how do people get through it, when the spouse they loved for 40 or 50 or 60...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    Tell Me Why??? Frustrated

    VivaLasViejas replied to johnson0424's topic in Emergency

    That was one of the reasons I left hospital nursing. After five years of Med/Surg/float experience, my career was more or less stalled---even though I had critical care and OB-GYN experience under my...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    So, I had a bad day......

    VivaLasViejas replied to CardioTrans's topic in CCU, Coronary, Cardiac

    This is much more than a "bad day"........a shift doesn't get much worse than that. I would strongly encourage you all to have a debriefing session, preferably with the hospital chaplain and a...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Healthier Living Support Thread: PART TWO!

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

    I'm really beginning to think that the key to stress management is to follow your bliss........I don't think I've ever been so relaxed in my adult life as I am now, despite being in a new job where I...
  9. VivaLasViejas

    I Need Some Comfort Please

    VivaLasViejas replied to Meerkat's topic in General Nursing

    I just got home a little while ago and ran across this thread. I'm so sorry to read your post about your little darling, but glad there are things that can be done to fix her up. Prayers being sent...
  10. VivaLasViejas

    Aspirating for blood when giving injections to infants?....Have the rules changed?

    VivaLasViejas replied to DutchgirlRN's topic in Patient Medications

    Well, now you've got me wondering...........I always aspirate when giving IM's and never gotten blood return, but then I've never given baby shots except for the times I worked in the newborn nursery...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Do you regret being a nurse

    VivaLasViejas replied to lpnstudentin2010's topic in General Nursing

    No. Never. I've been burned out, treated like a glorified pack animal, yelled at, cursed, micromanaged, disrespected, "eaten", and even had my life threatened.........but I can't imagine wanting to do...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Isn't this ridiculous?

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

    Well, now that's something entirely different, and I don't blame you a bit for being less than enthusiastic about what the administrator wants you to do. (In fact, I'd be tempted to tell her to go...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    Isn't this ridiculous?

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

    I also work in assisted living, and we have several sliding-scale diabetics whom we manage just fine. We have very detailed instructions for the caregivers as to when SS insulin is to be given, how it...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    How did you hear about allnurses.com?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Brian's topic in General Nursing

    I stumbled across the site in 2000, when I bought my first home computer. I lurked here for a couple of years, and then right around the first anniversary of 9/11, I decided for some reason to join up...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Is it ever ok to force a resident to change?

    VivaLasViejas replied to NicInNC's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    If you haven't done so already, please let your facility nurse know about these problems. It's her job to know what's going on with each resident and to assist with the development of his/her...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Anyone come back to Med Surg?

    VivaLasViejas replied to johnson0424's topic in Medical-Surgical

    I hate to tell you this, but it's only gotten worse in the past few years. Patient acuity has gone through the roof---those who would have been in critical care units only six months to a year ago,...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    "Part" Indian?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Thunderwolf's topic in General Nursing

    That makes me feel so much more 'in tune' with my distant Native American ancestry.......I never really believed I had a right to call myself Cherokee, but this has taught me to think differently....
  18. VivaLasViejas

    From Canada (CBC) an article about Nurses and Stress:

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

    I don't think it's just nursing that gets more stressful every year, and I don't think it affects just us grownups...........have you seen that commercial for Children's Pepto-Bismol? It's cute, but...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    What De-Stress technique works for you?

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

    Yup, the tanning bed is wonderful.........so is time spent w/ my grandson Eli (I call it "baby therapy" ) and gardening. I also enjoy my nighttime 'chats' with God, which never fail to send me to...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    Ghostbusters lyrics re-make can you help?

    VivaLasViejas replied to milenko's topic in General Nursing

    Oooooooooh, Lord, I'm almost afraid of what's gonna come out if I try this one.......(no pun intended!).......... When it's been too long, and you just can't 'go', Who ya gonna call? BowelBusters!...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Healthier Living Support Thread: PART TWO!

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

    Ya know what they say about great minds, Deb......... I was thinking the same thing. Let's do
  22. VivaLasViejas

    lithotomy...seriously?

    VivaLasViejas replied to elizabells's topic in Ob/Gyn

    You mean they're still making women give birth in the dead-bug position despite all the progress that's been made in obstetrics over the past 15-20 years?? I thought the process had become more humane...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    Check Out The Back Cover of November's AJN!!

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in Nursing Humor

    What you'll find is a full-page ad for a certain brand of enema, complete with the funniest visual aid to come along in years: EneMan!!:rotfl: He's a little green guy with orange shoes and an orange...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Medical Conditions

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

    I don't know of any offhand, even nurses with Hep C and HIV are practicing, and as long as everyone observes standard precautions there shouldn't be any additional risks. Acute conditions (such as...
  25. VivaLasViejas

    Need advice, being called in to the DON on Tues a.m.

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

    Sounds just like the assisted-living management company I worked for a few years ago. I was the RN for THREE buildings and a total of 160 residents, and was never in a given facility more than 10-20...