mtjoanna

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I started my nursing career in a psych hospital, so became pretty adept at documenting "exciting" events very factually. Unless two patients/residents had an encounter/altercation, mentioning another resident, and his/her situation in the charting is...

At my previous facility, I was the only nurse in the building from 1800-0600 and had up to 54 residents at one time. The 1800-2100 med pass was brutal as most of the residents had multiple meds and there were a lot of diabetics with BGs and sliding s...

I'm an RN who works at a small-town nursing home, owned by a large, multi-state company; I work nights--1745 to 0615 (or until the day is done--you know how it is). So here's the situation: geriatric pt with increasing edema. We attempt to contact th...

My facility actually has 2 transitional care units, each with 16 beds. During the day, two nurses staff each unit with a max of 8 patients while at noc, there's one nurse to the 16 residents. Now, the evening med pass is a breeze--the first SNF I wor...

I'm currently working transitional care. I started my career in psych, moved to long term care--which I very much enjoy--but because of the need for full time hours, moved to the transitional care unit. I'm working nights, which I wouldn't necessaril...

I have had a few instances of people asking me about stuff--the greenish chunky discharge from her ear, what this color of poo might mean. My advice generally consists of "that sounds like an excellent question for your provider."

Not cheesy at all! One thing that means a lot to us "pee-ons" is having sincere recognition from the bosses.

I'll freely admit that I used my first paycheck as a nurse to fulfill a life-long dream and bought myself a horse. I've never regretted her!

So, a year has passed since this incident. Six months ago, my husband and I moved to another town and I am working in a different facility. This facility is non-profit, owned by a church denomination and has been wonderful. There were several more is...

I did that with mixed results. It was good with all the nurses and most of the CNAs but I did have some issues with a few of the aids. One of them specifically told me "I'd be just fine if you showed me some favoritism. Seriously." We worked it out e...

It's a long-term care facility, not in a hospital, though they have PAs and NPs that round daily from both local hospitals. There are actually 2 transitional care units, both set up very similarly to each other and I'll be working in both units. Duri...

I am currently in orientation in transitional care. I've worked at this facility for 6 months in one of their long-term care units and have loved it but they didn't have full time hours for me there and the transitional care unit did, so I've moved d...

I couldn't find whether or not video links are allowed (via youtube). I suppose I'll find out if it's not allowed I saw this on my facebook today(my facebook info is NOT in the link) and ended up laughing so hard I almost experienced bladder incontin...

I know! I've had that same "work harder not smarter" line of doo-doo from someone who had never touched a patient...

So I've just completed my first week of solo nursing at my new position. This week, I had a fall, a death and our wing went under quarantine, as 4 elders ended up with diarrhea within an hour of each other. The CNAs employed at this facility are pret...

I have just finished my second of 5 days of orienting on the shift that I will be working in a new facility. The first day I was surprised (in a good way) to find that one of my coworkers was one of my classmates in nursing school! My previous facili...

I too love the longevity of relationships within LTC. I never thought I'd want to do LTC d/t the frequent short-staffing and high stress of the job, and my first experience with working at a for-profit LTC nearly burnt me out of nursing altogether. H...

LOL nurse Leigh. Apparently, she has shown up at people's doors before. If you are a no-call, no-show, not-answering-your-phone, you may end up with this DON politely knocking on your door to see if you are ok. I find that I am ok with that type of h...

I think higher wages in general would be better than a bonus program. I agree with others that a great CNA can have all kinds of bad things happen on her shift while a lazy, irresponsible one can have a great couple of weeks. However, if a CNA can ma...

True; I attended a seminar run by a man who works with vets returning from war with PTSD. One thing he has them do is to journal--with paper and pen/pencil as physically writing activates a portion of the brain that typing on a keyboard doesn't.

I have personally found that having 2 dogs works better for me than having one. Yes, it is twice the food and vaccinations, but if you are careful to get dogs that are able to be good friends, they keep each other company while you are gone and help ...

Is relocation a possibility? If it is, start applying across the country. I don't know what the restrictions on your employment are, but I do know of one nursing home in rural Montana that is DESPERATE for nurses and would not turn down a new grad. I...

I had one pt think that I was Hitler, so she tried to strangle me. Surprisingly strong for an 88-year-old, though somewhat lacking in visual acuity. I'm a short, chubby, blonde woman in so the resemblance to Hitler seems a bit of a stretch. Ah well. ...

You may need to start developing a more authoritative role within the home. You have the training and knowledge that has earned some respect and your willingness to help is greatly appreciated. Now you need to step into the role as manager. Make your...