RehabRN book club: The TGIF edition

Yes, dear readers, it's been a while. Books just take forever anymore, especially when I spend an inordinate amount of time with my new baby computer, trying to get everything where I want it. Online backups are wonderful, yet slow.

However, I must say, I've found some good stuff to read. As I may have mentioned earlier, Brief by Joseph McCormack is a keeper. If you're a fan of the Elements of Style, it's more concept than rule. It really does give practical advice. I'll be buying one (since I got threats from the library if I didn't return it).

My most recent finish (on Wednesday) was Presence by Amy Cuddy. To me, there's a lot to like in this book. As a rehab nurse, you'll be cheering for Amy because she's a rehab patient who's made it (she had a DAI for all of you who are interested.) As an escaped business person, she went to work at Harvard Business School and changed up a lot of things with her research. Overall, Amy's book is stories of how presence changes things (see her TED talk for the rest of the story).

Trust me, I'll be posing it up before my next set of meetings. Why not?

Have a great weekend! Enjoy every minute.

They don't have a T-shirt for this

Being a certified nurse can be nice, but documenting all of those continuing education things can be a pain.

Hooray! You're a certified nurse! Fast forward (it really didn't seem that long) and before you know it, it's time to renew that certification.

However, it's not impossible. Here are my tips (from personal experience since I've done this a couple of times this year) on how to get your stuff together and submit without ripping all your hair out.


1. Be organized. Keep good records of what educational seminars, conferences, webinars, etc. you attend. I bought a small scanner for receipts, but I scan every single document I get and put it in a folder on my computer.

You can really collect a lot of stuff over most certification periods (three to five years is standard).

2. If you go the electronic route, always remember to back up your info and put it in a safe place. You don't want all that time and work to go up in smoke. You can backup stuff online or on DVD or in a fireproof file box.

3. Start early. Many organizations charge late fees (and many are not cheap). Some (like one East Coast organization I will not mention) like to audit the folks who file late. For the most part, organizations audit a certain percentage of recertification candidates (this percentage varies).

How do I know? I was one of the lucky folks who got audited when I forgot to mail in my stuff while I was on vacation this spring. 

4. Read the instructions carefully and make sure you send in the appropriate amount of contact hours. Some organizations distinguish between online learning, webinars, conference calls, etc.

5. File electronically if your organization allows it. See #3. No late fees if you can send it in online by the due date and most send you a confirmation e-mail once you're done.

6. If you can't file electronically, always, always, always keep a copy of your completed application.

One friend applied for a certification and the certifying body lost his/her application. Thankfully, he/she had a copy and after a couple of phone calls, resent it, and all was good on the road to certification.

Without that copy, it would have been pretty ugly.

Enjoy your recertification adventure!

Wild, wooly, and can we join you

Wild would have been an appropriate description of part of my day. One of the patients grabbed a trapeze and threw himself into his bed a la Tarzan. All I had to do was maneuver the feet and park the wheelchair.

Wooly described the outerwear I was wearing. Damp and dreary, but I'm not complaining. A few of our folks at the Hotel hail from areas being blanketed by the latest round of snow. In a couple of towns, they've had so much snow in the last week that roofs are collapsing.

And while the first round of inspectors came and quizzed us, our program was one of the stars of the show here at Hotel Rehab. They love the SU work. They want more of it.

Now just give us what we need: a backup so if I ever win that lottery, someone has a clue as to what is going on.

It would be nice! So so nice! A nurse can dream...stay tuned.