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

    Why do unit nurses have bad reps?

    VivaLasViejas replied to SheriLynnRN's topic in MICU, SICU

    I'm primarily a med/surg nurse, but I work ICU enough that I can see things from both sides (although there really shouldn't be 'sides' in nursing at all!), and often find myself explaining the ICU...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    Anyone go from DON to floor RN?

    VivaLasViejas replied to johnson0424's topic in Nurse Management

    I was an ADON in a nursing home, and before that I was the DNS in an assisted living facility. I left the wonderful world of management 2 1/2 years ago to become a worker-bee on a Med/Surg floor, and...
  3. VivaLasViejas

    Why Are 12 hour shifts the standard?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Alpha13's topic in General Nursing

    I'm one of only about a half-dozen nurses on our floor who work 8's. I do four shifts per week, and while I wish I could handle 12's, I know better than to even try.........I did them when I was...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Being The Patient SUX!!

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in General Nursing

    How is it that I can know so much as a nurse, and then when I'm the patient I turn stupid?? I'm scheduled for a parathyroid scan next Friday, and it just occurred to me that a) I don't know anyone...
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Being The Patient SUX!!

    VivaLasViejas replied to VivaLasViejas's topic in General Nursing

    Thanks to all who've posted..........I do appreciate the info!
  6. VivaLasViejas

    You know its going to be a bad shift when...

    VivaLasViejas replied to Adam D. RN2005's topic in Nursing Humor

    When the charge nurse says: "Oh, thank God you're here!!" and hands you a laundry list of all the tasks that need to be done......... No kidding.......one day I came in and was given a sheet of...
  7. VivaLasViejas

    Have you ever hit the bone?

    VivaLasViejas replied to melissa_rn's topic in Ambulatory Care, Clinic

    I did it once when I was giving a 60-pound elderly lady who was dying from gastric cancer a shot of morphine. I'll never forget the feeling........the shock of it ran all the way up my own arm. Didn't...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    There was a full moon last night. Can you usually tell when you're at work?

    VivaLasViejas replied to JennInColumbus's topic in General Nursing

    We call 'em "granola nights"........that's cuz all the fruits and the nuts and the flakes (not to mention the vegetables) are out creating merry hell for everyone
  9. VivaLasViejas

    You know its going to be a bad shift when...

    VivaLasViejas replied to Adam D. RN2005's topic in Nursing Humor

    It's a full moon weekend in summer, it's 100 degrees out, and there's a carnival in
  10. VivaLasViejas

    Med-Surg Nurses Association

    VivaLasViejas replied to grinnurse's topic in Medical-Surgical

    Yes.......there's AMSN, the American Medical-Surgical Nursing organization that offers certification and other benefits for Med/Surg nurses. I myself am a CMSRN, having over three years' experience in...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Nose Piercing

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

    We have a couple of younger nurses who wear tiny studs in their noses. They are quite tasteful, and no one in management seems to have a problem with it. In fact, if I were young and cute, I'd...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Things Patients Have Taught Me NOT To Do

    VivaLasViejas replied to Trixxy's topic in Nursing Humor

    Do not drink a fifth of whiskey and then decide to clean your hunting rifle........GSW's to the knee really hurt when the ETOH wears
  13. VivaLasViejas

    Share Your Saying

    VivaLasViejas replied to angelique777's topic in Nursing Humor

    I love Southern-isms too! "He's so confused, he don't know whether to scratch his watch or wind his butt" "His brain is so small, you could put it in the butt of a gnat and it'd roll around like a...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Ever had a family overdramatic with dying patient?

    VivaLasViejas replied to rn-jane's topic in General Nursing

    I can't really add much of anything to what's already been posted here, except this: There really is no 'right' or 'wrong' way to mourn. Every culture, every family, every person has their own way of...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    Read about my night!

    VivaLasViejas replied to evans_c1's topic in Medical-Surgical

    You got THAT right........between the detoxers, the psych pts. who stop taking their meds, and the demented/confused NH residents, Med/Surg is loaded with mental
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Thinking About Moving to AZ Sometime.....Need Info

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in Arizona Nursing

    OK, I've had just about enough of Oregon's famously soggy springs (not to mention autumns and winters)........I love our summers here, and the scenery is gorgeous year-round, but every year I hate the...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Which nursing forum do I fit in?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Mandylpn's topic in General Nursing

    Well, I think it was harder for me to fit everything in because I was the only nurse, and being an RN, I had to do staff delegation and assignment, which is something only registered nurses are...
  18. VivaLasViejas

    Which nursing forum do I fit in?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Mandylpn's topic in General Nursing

    I stand corrected........there USED to be an assisted living nursing forum. It must've been absorbed under Geriatric and Long-Term Care, because I can't find it anymore either.
  19. VivaLasViejas

    Which nursing forum do I fit in?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Mandylpn's topic in General Nursing

    Yes, there is a forum called Assisted Living Nursing. Just check under the Nursing Forums section.......you'll find it. Good luck to you. I hope you're working for a good company that cares about its...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    That's why they call him "The Streak"

    VivaLasViejas replied to Nurse Ratched's topic in Psychiatric

    You really can't use a chemical restraint in this instance, at least not without a HUGE amount of documentation and 1:1 observation, and the state surveyors will probably still cite you for it (if...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Study Groups Necessary???

    VivaLasViejas replied to Curious1alwys's topic in General Students

    I was one of those who did much better studying on my own. We had several study groups in my class, but I found that whenever I joined one, we tended to get off topic and BS, drink coffee, and laugh...
  22. VivaLasViejas

    T-Ball pays player to assault boy with autism

    VivaLasViejas replied to LydiaNN's topic in Developmental Disabilities

    All I can add here is, MEAN PEOPLE SUCK.
  23. VivaLasViejas

    "Natural" birth

    VivaLasViejas replied to HeartsOpenWide's topic in Ob/Gyn

    "Natural" childbirth is when the mother stops work, squats in the field, delivers the baby, and puts it to her breast before going back to her job. What we do in hospitals is NOT natural childbirth,...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Religion in Nursing Practice

    VivaLasViejas replied to 2007_RN's topic in General Nursing

    [quote=cheerfuldoer I only pray with my patients when they ask me to that way I'm showing respect for their personal religious preferences. If they ask for a hug and a hand squeeze, I give them that....
  25. VivaLasViejas

    Insominiac here.. Need 11am to 11pm shift...

    VivaLasViejas replied to LearningRN's topic in General Nursing

    I have pretty much the best of both worlds........I work 11A-7P, and not only do I not have to get up with the chickens, I get home in time to see my family and go to bed at a normal hour. I love it....