Author Archives: Nurse Rene

Nurse Rene

About Nurse Rene

Nurse Rene has been an RN since 1978; CCRN since 1989 and attained a BSN in 2010. She has worked in virtually every specialty from Neonatology to Neurosurgery and is a Member of Sigma Theta Tau International Nursing Honor Society with a particular interest in helping students and new grads develop to their full potential. She's been married for 32 years and has a keen interest in history and in current issues as nursing continues to develop as a Real Profession. When not spoiling the grandchildren, she enjoys sewing, cooking, kayaking, camping and travel. She likes all music which does not hurt her ears, watching NCIS, Leverage, Top Gear and Criminal Minds and reads books written by Clive Cussler, Miss Manners, Erma Bombeck and Tom Clancy. She enjoys collecting Quotations for use in her writings.
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Do we need HIPAA—for coworkers?

Sure, there are rules about patient privacy. But what about when our friends and associates count on us to keep their trusted information from becoming public knowledge?

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“I can’t find a job as a nurse–do I have to start over?”

“I’ve been unable to get a nursing job since last July. This is wreaking havoc on me not only career-wise, but emotionally as well. What can I do?

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Why nurses really do what they do

Here’s what the hardcore clinicians like myself REALLY think about the smiles and niceties this week.

Why is nursing school so hard?

Why is nursing school so hard?

It’s simple. We’re not doing anyone a kindness by encouraging people who don’t have what it takes to stand and deliver good patient care to be in the profession.

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The yellowstained blues of a cocky resident

This is a (true) story about how a YBCA (young, brash, cocky and arrogant doctor) became his own worst enemy. Chuckle if you must.

Baby boomer nurses: Are we the fittest to survive?

Baby boomer nurses: Are we the fittest to survive?

It’s remarkable, when one reflects back, that baby boomer nurses actually lived to adulthood!

Why nurses over 50 can’t find jobs

Why nurses over 50 can’t find jobs

It isn’t because we aren’t valuable. In fact, it may be just the opposite.

Has childcare improved since the 1950s?

Has childcare improved since the 1950s?

Were we just lucky? Or did we develop a natural immunity from our environment?

How did my patient get that crazy injury?!

How did my patient get that crazy injury?!

Sometimes the lack of common sense is WAY too easy to spot!

Could you have handled home health nursing in the 1970s?

Could you have handled home health nursing in the 1970s?

When I first started in home healthcare, my mother had this romantic notion that I would be taking care of the well-to-do in their fine houses. Little did she know…

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Remembering the annual ‘New Residents Day’

The first of July used to be a date which forever lived in infamy for nurses who work in teaching hospitals…

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Nursing education: How much is enough?

APRNs are being required to go back to school for a Doctor of Nursing Practice degree so they can continue, in many cases, to do the same work they are doing now…

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The freedom to choose your own health?

Is it okay for a hospital to forbid the use of legal substances such as tobacco by employees on their own time?

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Can you hear me now?

Does anyone else have problems getting to speak with a Real Live Person anymore?

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10 ways you know you’re a home health nurse!

Here are top 10 telltale signs that you’re definitely a home health nurse (wink wink).