CaliBoy760

Justin Wilson, the Cajun cook, had a recipe for no-potato potato salad using saltines instead. Never tried it, but it seemed interesting... No Potatoe Potatoe Salad

I've been working the NOC shift (6P-6A) at a county correctional facility for a couple of months now. One of the nurses who I relieve from day shift refuses to do a narcotic count with me at the end of her shift. She makes the excuse that it's alread...

In the big scheme of things? Probably not. I refuse to start my shift until the narc count has been completed, and scrambling to find another nurse to do the count is a waste of my time and theirs when the nurse responsible refuses to do an integral ...

I agree. But, it's never the nurse who has actually done the med pass. My issue is with the LVN who did, but still refuses to count narcotics at the end of her shift.

Pay really is all over the map, even in California. My first job out of school was for $19.21. Second job was $27.00. Third job was $31.00. And then the recession hit and the bottom dropped out of everything. At the time I had enough experience to st...

Working the NOC shift will significantly lower your exposure to family members...

Before working in an Urgent Care Clinic, I had no idea how profoundly beneficial a liter bag of NS could be. I learned that chronic dehydration can be manifested without any real physical symptoms other than generalized malaise. Pushing a liter of fl...

I have been working registry/travel for the last couple of years. Whenever I apply for a new position I'm asked to provide my work history including my supervisors name and contact info. I never know how to answer this. Yes, as a travel nurse I repor...

Frankly, I'd be more concerned with AMN than with Kaiser. As a traveller, you are hired help to both the registry you're working for and the receiving facility. I did a stint at Kaiser through one of AMN's affiliates. The management are not nurses, a...

I keep a basic med kit in my car that includes a box of gloves, a seat belt cutter, and several towels. I was on vacation recently and had just checked in to the hotel when a medical transport van was t-boned right in front of the hotel, flipping it ...

My mother was an ER nurse in the inner city and she carried a snub nosed .38 in her purse in to work every day. This was long before Draconian laws prevented doing so. I own firearms, but I don't feel that I work in an environment that warrants carry...

Tell your DON what you've just told all of us. It's no big deal, really. Patients who have been in the hospital for extended periods sometimes try to create drama where no drama really exists. You could also make a point of checking in with him befor...

I'm not sure why you singled out Kaplan as the reason you didn't pass. You failed because you didn't correctly answer the required number of questions. That has nothing to do with Kaplan. All NCLEX study aids, and, indeed, the NCLEX itself, are depen...

The vast majority of Travel Nurse agencies are RN only, with the (very) occasional LVN/LPN slot. I'm currently working for Cirrus Medical in California at $27.00 and hour. One thing I've noticed as an LVN is to focus on agencies that staff government...

My first (and only) job in LTC was a 12 hour NOC shift. I enjoyed it immensely and I learned a lot, especially time management. Three med passes actually ate up most of the shift, and charting between the hours of 2400 an 0300 took care of the rest. ...

Color coding staff is simply a joke. I've worked at three different facilities in the last three years. All of them had color coding in place but each facility had different colors! For example, one hospital had all RN's in Navy Blue, and at another ...

Sounds like you need to rally your state board, or your local Licensed Nurse organization. Placing a PPD is, essentially, child's play when compared to evaluating and implementing venous access.

I don't know why so many people get hung up on the magical "85" questions. I was well prepared, coming out of school with a 3.8 GPA, and I answered 180 questions and passed. Keep in mind that they are always adding test questions that do not count to...

I think that your facility is reading more in to the law than is required. Licensed Nurses do everything "under the supervision of an RN", which does not mean that the RN is actually observing the procedure. Also, are you sure that the law actually r...

Nice, well written article. My one beef was the reference to "$15 to $17 an hour". I am one LVN who truly believes that I am worth $30 an hour. The highest I've been paid was $32, and right now I make $28, and I had to fight for every penny of that, ...

I'm no longer at the VA, but I'm in line for two different positions in San Diego and Palm Springs. Both are Hyperbaric LVN positions.

My recollection is that I received a notice that I was NOT considered for a position, so, I wouldn't give up just yet...

Have you checked the "closing date" on USAJobs? You won't hear anything from them either way until AFTER that date. In fact, it may be up to a month after that date that you'll hear something from them. Also, log in to your USAJobs account frequently...

A bit off topic, so I apologize in advance. As an LVN in Cali, I explored becoming an LPT as well, seeing as they are managed by the same BVNPT. I could find no other way to sit for the LPT exam except for going through the entire LPT program. Which,...

As a former contract nurse who had to go through all the same BS, keep in mind that there are probably 15 people up the chain that are responsible for hiring you. It's the government, so it's bogged down by redundant federal workers who do nothing bu...