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

    First death....

    VivaLasViejas replied to clh8987's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    No, there was nothing you could have done.....it was simply her time, that's all. And how wonderful for her that it wasn't prolonged and painful! I know that first death is tough. We tend to torment...
  2. VivaLasViejas

    No specific training, total disorganization - is this normal?

    VivaLasViejas replied to JustAdmitToObs's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    I'm afraid it
  3. VivaLasViejas

    How does diarrhea or vomiting affect someone's INR?

    VivaLasViejas replied to bennett12's topic in General Nursing

    Thank you all for this information. My husband is on warfarin and I never even thought of this. Now I've warned him to call his anticoag nurse if he ever gets sick with N/V/D so his INR can be checked...
  4. VivaLasViejas

    Suicide by antibotics ?

    VivaLasViejas replied to ohmeowzer RN's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    How do you even know a fish is sick and needs
  5. VivaLasViejas

    Miss Manners for Nurses

    VivaLasViejas replied to Emergent's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    There's a lot I didn't do well as a parent, but teaching my kids manners was something I did right. And they're raising THEIR kids to be polite, because none of us want anyone to think they were...
  6. VivaLasViejas

    Miss Manners for Nurses

    VivaLasViejas replied to Emergent's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    PLEASE don't tell me your life story in the first 15 minutes after we're
  7. VivaLasViejas

    My love/hate relationship with nursing.

    VivaLasViejas replied to rpsychnurse's topic in General Nursing

    Oh yeah, you'll use your psych skills A LOT in long-term care! Most of the residents have some form of dementia, and a fair amount of them have other mental illnesses on top of it, which in turn can...
  8. VivaLasViejas

    Suicide by antibotics ?

    VivaLasViejas replied to ohmeowzer RN's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    Wow. I wonder if you really CAN kill yourself with fish antibiotics, or if all you'll accomplish is making yourself feel lousy enough that you wish you were
  9. VivaLasViejas

    Have you ever called Corporate at LTC?

    VivaLasViejas replied to Blackcat99's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    Yeah, calling Corporate paints a very large target on your back. Somehow TPTB always find out who called, and next thing you know you're being escorted out of the building. I've never done it, but I...
  10. VivaLasViejas

    Do you go to work with vomiting/diarrhea?

    VivaLasViejas replied to designer-mommy's topic in General Nursing

    I've gone to work with bad colds, sore throat, and bronchitis, and worn a mask. I will NOT go in with nausea, vomiting and/or diarrhea because a) I've always worked with either elderly or newborns,...
  11. VivaLasViejas

    Things I wish I could tell my patients

    VivaLasViejas replied to vintagemother's topic in Psychiatric

    From a patient's perspective: I think I would appreciate having a nurse who "gets it". There is no substitute for talking to someone who's been there, done that, got the battle scars to prove it. I am...
  12. VivaLasViejas

    Changing Attitudes of a Psych Nurse

    VivaLasViejas replied to wingding's topic in Psychiatric

    I'll be honest with y'all---I don't know how you do this work. As a patient I know I'm no picnic, but you deal with a lot harder cases than mine every day and I admire you for doing it so well in most...
  13. VivaLasViejas

    RN Health Issues

    VivaLasViejas replied to kelly328846's topic in Health, Stress Management

    breeeeeeathe.....in.....out.....let it go..... The trouble with posts like this is that they go South in a hurry and wind up getting shut down. I know it's tantalizing, like yanking on a stray bit of...
  14. VivaLasViejas

    Identifying and differentiating smells

    VivaLasViejas replied to Martial's topic in General Nursing

    The odor of vomited feces is unspeakable. I can't even come up with a comparison. Speaking of feces, I used to work on an LTC unit where I could always tell who had recently had a BM the instant I...
  15. VivaLasViejas

    On Stigma: World Mental Health Day

    VivaLasViejas posted a topic in Nurse Disabilities

    Today, October 10th, 2014, is World Mental Health Day--a day to acknowledge the importance of mental health, and a day to educate others about mental illness. Here's my contribution. Today I'm going...
  16. VivaLasViejas

    Admin nurse returns to bedside and.....

    VivaLasViejas replied to duskyjewel's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    I went back and forth between administration/management and the floor during my career, and in my own defense I must say I never forgot how it was to be a floor nurse. But I had trouble leaving off...
  17. VivaLasViejas

    Congratulations Judi (aka traumaRUs) Our new Community Manager Assistant!

    VivaLasViejas replied to Brian's topic in News, Announcements

    Congratulations on your new job!! You'll be great!!
  18. VivaLasViejas

    Senior Competency Testing

    VivaLasViejas replied to andrea.schadewitz's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    You would do well to get in touch with the Adult Protective Services division in the county where your father resides. Financial exploitation of the elderly is illegal, and there are things that can...
  19. VivaLasViejas

    Nursing and Anxiety

    VivaLasViejas replied to Chaotika's topic in General Nursing

    Hello there~ I'm so sorry you're going through this. Although our Terms of Service prohibits members from offering medical advice, we can urge you to get off the Internet and see a mental health...
  20. VivaLasViejas

    Do we serve a tray

    VivaLasViejas replied to CapeCodMermaid's topic in Geriatric, LTC

    Years ago when I worked as an RCM, I had a resident who had had several strokes and needed pudding-thick liquids and pureed foods; otherwise he choked on almost everything. He was, however, A&O x...
  21. VivaLasViejas

    Mantra?... Whats yours??...

    VivaLasViejas replied to PrayingToPass's topic in Spirituality, Religion

    "This, too, shall
  22. VivaLasViejas

    Anxiety

    VivaLasViejas replied to ItsJustMe78's topic in Nurse Disabilities

    I respectfully disagree. They CAN fire you for a disability, although they have to make it look like the firing is for some sort of misconduct or deficiency. All they have to do is say they "can't"...
  23. VivaLasViejas

    RN Health Issues

    VivaLasViejas replied to kelly328846's topic in Health, Stress Management

    I hate to see another slugfest break out here when there are a gazillion other threads on the same topic. Maybe if we just let this one die of its own accord, it will encourage our new member to go...
  24. VivaLasViejas

    Patient satisfaction or patient dissatisfaction

    VivaLasViejas replied to Brian's topic in Patient, Colleague Relations

    That IS pretty tacky---it's like "could you please bend over a little more so I can kiss your tookus?" I sooo do not miss this part of working in
  25. VivaLasViejas

    At a crossroad

    VivaLasViejas replied to PackersFanRN's topic in Nurses Recovery

    You must self-report any arrest, charge, or conviction to the Board of Nursing. Do it right away if you haven't already. They will likely place you in a monitoring program for nurses with...