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

    skills help

    VivaLasViejas replied to Spider Cat's topic in First Year After Licensure

    A few more little tricks of the trade: If you know you're getting 2-3 post-ops during your shift, pull all the paperwork you'll need (standards of care, frequent vitals sheets, and other flowsheets)...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    Tom Cruise on Postpartum depression

    VivaLasViejas replied to LizzyL&DRN's topic in Ob/Gyn

    Thanks, Deb.........although I feel strongly enough about this subject that I would have used a somewhat harsher gesture, but I don't consider TC (or anything to do with him) worth violating the
  3. VivaLasViejas

    Tom Cruise on Postpartum depression

    VivaLasViejas replied to LizzyL&DRN's topic in Ob/Gyn

  4. VivaLasViejas

    Tom Cruises' take on Psychiatry

    VivaLasViejas replied to Katydidit34's topic in Psychiatric

    Here's what I have to say about Tom Cruise's
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Swollen feet

    VivaLasViejas replied to CashewLPN's topic in Scrubs, Uniforms, Gear

    Does this run in your family? Some women tend to have swelling in their feet and/or legs, especially during the warm summer months, and if they look to older generations they'll often find their...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    Down time

    VivaLasViejas replied to Morguein's topic in MICU, SICU

    What's down time??
  7. VivaLasViejas

    Merck Manual

    VivaLasViejas replied to Cheetah's topic in General Nursing

    I love mine.........there are even a few sections written with a wry sense of humor, the most notable of which is the one about flatulence :chuckle It describes the different sounds and odors, and...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Uterine Balloon Therapy?

    VivaLasViejas replied to sddlnscp's topic in Ob/Gyn

    I had this done several years ago, and even though it didn't stop my periods entirely, they've never been anywhere near what they used to be........I used to go through 2 super-plus tampons, an...
  9. VivaLasViejas

    Do you ever wonder why you are here?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Curious1alwys's topic in General Nursing

    Good for you! Please don't think that you should have it "all figured out by now". You're not even 30 yet........if you live the average life span, you've got another 50 years to work on that. :)...
  10. VivaLasViejas

    How many times do you poop a day

    VivaLasViejas replied to diannal's topic in Nursing Humor

    :rotfl: BWAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!! :rotfl: Reminds me of when my husband and I were newlyweds..........I called him at work to ask him about something I couldn't wait till the end of the day...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Do you ever wonder why you are here?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Curious1alwys's topic in General Nursing

    Thrashej, you have received some excellent advice here. What you are experiencing is something that happens to EVERYONE if they live long enough. This may be your first life crisis, but it won't be...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    MDS Coordinator Salaries

    VivaLasViejas replied to Nascar nurse's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    The answer is: NEVER ENOUGH. There's not enough money in any nursing home's budget for the 60- and 70-hour weeks these nurses put in, not to mention for being on-call 24/7/365, for working the floor...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    I have blood in my urine

    VivaLasViejas replied to RN2Bn2006's topic in Dialysis, Renal, Urology

    Paula, I went through the very same thing when I had my first set of kidney stones........everything on the 'Net pointed to cancer!! I was soooooo relieved when the radiologist who was doing my CT...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Poll: "Do Not Use List" of abbreviations

    VivaLasViejas replied to soontobe_RN's topic in General Nursing

    I still don't get why we have to use ml's instead of cc's, and I HATE writing everything out, but I can understand the reasons for most of the now-banned abbreviations. Now, if we can just get the MDs...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    I have blood in my urine

    VivaLasViejas replied to RN2Bn2006's topic in Dialysis, Renal, Urology

    You can actually have some very large kidney stones without knowing it.......it depends on where they're located. Stones in the kidney itself rarely cause pain, but will cause hematuria and frequency;...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    You Know You Live in California When ...

    VivaLasViejas replied to Sheri257's topic in California Nursing

    I think I know what you mean........to me, dressing up is anything fancier than scrubs or a T-shirt and jeans. If attendance at some event requires wearing a dress or, God forbid, high heels, I'll...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Lasix in Nebs for Air Hunger?

    VivaLasViejas replied to rosemadder's topic in Hospice, Palliative

    Well, dang, I learn something new everyday..........going to have to keep this in mind for the future, as we're starting a small inpatient hospice unit and will be working with this situation a lot....
  18. VivaLasViejas

    You Know You Live in California When ...

    VivaLasViejas replied to Sheri257's topic in California Nursing

    Here are a few from my own experiences as a former southern Californian: When it rains, everybody drives like they, personally, are getting wet. There are only three seasons: spring, summer, and fire....
  19. VivaLasViejas

    13lb 12oz newborn!! "The big Enchilada"

    VivaLasViejas replied to soontobe_RN's topic in Ob/Gyn

    My poor daughter, who is almost 8 months pregnant and utterly miserable at this point, saw that in the newspaper and nearly fainted!! She'd just gotten the news that her baby is already 6 1/4 pounds,...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    Wouldn't this be considered some kind of abuse?

    VivaLasViejas replied to BowlerRN's topic in Patient Safety Issues

    It's inappropriate, to say the least. Surely there must be some way to distract this resident from wandering while you're on rounds. Part of the problem is that you're understaffed (which is...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Coding at 5am -6am

    VivaLasViejas replied to angelique777's topic in Cardiac

    "Keep 'em alive till 7:35" is the motto for both day and night shifts where I work! :chuckle Seriously, when I worked nights, it seemed like the sh** would always hit the fan right before shift...
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Medicare Won't Cover Some Anxiety Drugs

    VivaLasViejas replied to NRSKarenRN's topic in Activism, Healthcare

    AAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!! This is what drives me absolutely around the bend.....people pay into the Medicare system their whole working lives, and then the service isn't there for...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    What's your opinion? Unethical???

    VivaLasViejas replied to stidget99's topic in General Nursing

    Agree w/ the above. Even a 'good judge of character' can be wrong, and the newspapers are full of stories about good-hearted folks who opened their home to a stranger and then got ripped off, their...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Co-worker had stroke

    VivaLasViejas replied to NurseyPam's topic in General Nursing

    Yep, a couple of months ago one of our CNAs, a relatively healthy 50-year-old, had her SECOND stroke while she was delivering warm blankets to a patient's room. (Her first was at age 39.) One of the...
  25. VivaLasViejas

    Narcan and PCA's

    VivaLasViejas replied to dosamigos76's topic in General Nursing

    We keep the Narcan in a locked drawer in the patient's room. Years ago, we kept it at the bedside---not taped to the PCA---but that was deep-sixed by JCAHO, so we just went to using the drawer. It's...