Blog Archives

NUTRITION For Patients and Employees

5/30/2014

    Nutrition & Food Choices Provided by the V.A. Cafeteria to In-Patients and Employees.

    OH ~ ~ ~    Lawdy.    Is this a joke or what ? ? ?
        Where has the 1st Lady Been on this issue????
        She is completely focused on school children.

Who is focused on Traumatic Brain Injury ? ? ? ? ;
Who is focused on Amputees ? ? ?
Who is focused on Bi-Polar???
Who is focused on ?? ?? ??

Who is focused on VA Employee Stress?

Patients yelling at you.
Families swearing at you using the English Language in a way - you could N E V E R Imagine ? ? ?
And all any VA employee wants is to take a break and enjoy a very good lunch...

            to steel themselves up for the events of the afternoon.. .. .. ..
            The ONLY way this happens, is if the employee can find a hiding place outside and brings their
            own lunch from home.

    Most employees can not leave Post / Station for Lunch.   So - walk to Emp. Cafeteria and Pray.

Hard boiled eggs made on Monday & expected to last the week. . .
Bag salad greens sprayed with a preservative to last for days & days in open bowls. After few HOURS stuff taste funny ~ much less after few DAYS.
O L D grease used for french fries & burgers & hot dogs. The burgers are far from 100% beef
and No One, Including docs ~ ever ask "hot dog content ".
French fries are fake potatoes.No baked chicken or fish. who wants that???
Jello is a necessary food group for all 3 meals a day.
Wonder Bread IS Nutritious. Who are you to question that CHQ Contract across all 50 states.
CELIAC ???? oh - alittle oatmeal or cream of wheat can't upset your system that much, because V.A. CHQ in DC thinks cream of rice is a joke

Corn is can corn left over from 1958. No corn is ever that hard & yellow - straight off the cobb.

    And this is also feed to the hospital patients.    God help any patient that has specific dietary needs.
    The families   - literally - have to jump up & down - over & over ;
    days on end -
    before anyone in the   "Kitchen" gets - hummm. special diet.      just take jello. :~)

    The V.A. motto is to just buy a bag of peanut M&M's - cause contained in the bag ~
        are all the colors representing all the mandatory food groups.

Problems at the V.A. Based on MY Working There :~)

5/30/2014

Problems at the V.A. Based on MY Working There

Education quality of doctors:

Most VA docs who are American, did not grad. at top class. Most are low middle to bottom of Class . So that is a C Average.
Exception is, foreign born docs. They are usually very educated and come with great expectation to the VA. That does not last long.
Many docs to be able to withstand the vice-grip of Mgmt; do Research. And NIH is often very amiable to VA Research cause there is such a large, readily available research pool.

Big Issue is a Doc with Military Back-Ground vs. Civilian Doc

This is huge !

Military docs tell everyone, even PTSD & bi-polar; “To Buck Up.”
Civilian doc - that would NEVER happen. Such words never cross their minds.
Many military docs like mgmt cause their training and then experience in the field, don’t match. The military, are the only folks on earth ~ who would take a trained pediatrician and send him/her out to combat location to work on Trauma.
In the VA - many docs refer to fellow docs only by Last Name. They never say Dr. This is an unwritten signal telling folks that individual is of questionable medical skill. I was personally told on more than one occasion, to stop referring to So&So as Dr. . . Only use last name.
All Docs have huge patient load. Many are not allowed yearly training or to attend conference on current state-of-the-art-process; procedure; medication; etc.
Does not take long for a veteran family member to try to find the Civilian Doc.. .. ..

Education level of Nurses & Pharmacy Staff

The good news is, there is a specific education level required to be a nurse or pharmacy staff member. Here again the VA goes after the B or C level person. Partly because they don’t have to pay them as much and the BorC caliber – have lesser expectations for raises and promotions.
In the VA ~ time affords every employee the raise and promotion. Occasionally, one sees a Merit advancement. Most Advancement is simply wearing the clock down.

Education level of Admin and Maintenance Staff

Many Admin emp. have a GED. It is very unusual to find an Admin with a college degree. If possible, these folks get promoted w/in VA system or leave.
Employees are expected to do as they are told. No more. No Less.
Initiative Discouraged and often punished.
I experience VA Admin staff that had a Laminated Copy of their Job Description in their top drawer and they would actually pull it out & tell you exactly what their job duties were. This was Accepted ! ! And that was exactly ALL they would do. And complaining to their Manager changed ZERO. One day, I actually took the thing from the Admin; returned to my office with it and began to cut it up. Several docs asked me what I was doing and when I told them – I was told that was good ! maybe I should cut into even smaller pieces ! ! !
Nothing is approached with a sense of urgency - even care on many levels.
Most of the Admin& Maint. Employees could not find a job elsewhere with pay & benefits equal to VA and they know it. Once hired, these folks plan to stay. Especially is less urban areas of the country.
The VA is often the best employer in town .. .. ..

Actual VA Guidelines everyone Expected to Follow:

Current Process 20 + years old
Almost everything needs 5 signatures and 6 copies. Even travel vouchers can take over a week to get signed. Apts are recommended to ask for signatures. No – just – casual walk-in and ask for signature if the higher up is not busy…. Apt. Sch. Sch. Sch.
If one site sees a correction that would improve productivity – they are NOT allowed to make the change. All sites are to be the same.
In 2009, CHQ VA in DC rolled out Windows/7 all across the system country wide w/in very short time frame AND provided NO training for Docs or Admins on how to use MS-Office-7; with its brand new interface ! ! ! this almost brought the ENTIRE VA to its knees.
The VA still thinks a fax machine is a great thing. Most docs are far to large [over 10+ pages] to be successfully faxed.
Most Admins had no idea how to create a PDF. What a PDF even was or the merits of attaching a PDF to an email so one has a paper trail that a document was sent and received because of the Outlook Time Stamps. Lots of folks constantly say , “Never got fax”. Much much harder to say Did not get email w/pdf attachment when system logs and transmits receipts.
I became known as the “Queen of PDF’s” in my area. And docs came from other areas to ask me to help them create docs; show how to attach PDF to email; etc etc etc because THEY saw the benefit. I spent about 50% of my time, baby-sitting the copier as it created PDF files. I worked in Psych Research so there was LOTS of paperwork.

    Compare VA Employees to Other Federal Lab Location Employees

    I say this with great confidence based on my own experience working at several of the below listed Federal Labs on
    special assignments.

    I believe it would be impossible for a VA Admin, Maint or other Staffer to qualify for a job at:

JSC
JPL
Sandia
Los Alamos [LANL]

    The caliber of employee at   JSC, JPL,   LANL   is vastly superior to the quality of the employee at the VA.

    JPL, after all built the Mars Rover; Sent the Rover to Mars; The Rover returned Images to the eng / scientist here on         Earth.   Remember: it takes a HUGE staff of multi-disciplined employees to accomplish such a Project.

    JSC, how many Moon shots? And how long to actually design and build Space Station?   How many trips over the             years have been made to Space Station??? Remember: it takes a HUGE staff of multi-disciplined employees to
        accomplish such a Project.

    So the main question as I see it :
     How is it that the VA Hospital lags so far behind other Federal Research Facilities?
    And is so far behind, the MAYO; Johns-Hopkins; Cornell; Stanford???
    The VA has a HUGE staff of multi-disciplined employees - so why doesn’t the VA system
        show the same kinds of   results ? ? ?

    The VA cannot even calculate a Working Budget for the entire System for 1 year; much less calculate Staffing
    Requirement or Bed Requirements or Pharmacy Drug Stocking By Week based on Current RX and next Refill date.

    Think about it:

Docs have years and years of education and training. The Docs are certainly held to a higher standard.
The Admin Staff and the Maint Staff and other Support Personnel often only have a GED and are paid $10 to $15/hour. Those with “years of service, earn more.”
Most can not spell 50% of the necessary vocabulary in their work area.
Most have no idea what is actually going on in their area. And are to busy “texting’ to learn about the area.
And there is no written spec or requirement anywhere that all employees understand something about what is going on in the area they work in.

        based on what you have just read:
            Would you expect the VA system to be a well-oiled machine like a Ferrarri??

That Will N-E-V-E-R Happen To Me

5/15/2014

With the shift in seasons - weather becomes even more important.

There are more tornadoes.
There are more major wind storms with average gust now over 65mph..
There are more floods because it rains harder. At this time, in 2014, i can not
think of 1 American that does not need flood insurance...
Hurricane season starts earlier & earlier. Lasts longer. Heavier Rain.
Fire Season ! ! ! Used to be here, only in the West. now everywhere.

    The point for writing this, is to remind everyone, to make a PDF copy
    of important papers and store them as "DRAFT" emails; or on
    your "Cloud Storage".
     ex:

pdf of driver license
pdf of U.S. Passport
pdf of front page of car insurance and home owners insurance + phone #
pdf telling you if either insurance provides hotel accommodations ~ if emergency
pdf telling you who pays for towing
pdf of Social Security Cards for your children
pdf of Your Health Insurance Cards
pdf of names of your prescription drugs and phone number for pharmacy
that fills each Rx.
pdf with local phone numbers you would not keep on your phone but
would need in weather evacuation and wanted FEMA to help you.

                        [like your Banks in case storm takes out web servers and nothing
                      is on-line and FEMA would transfer money for lodging / food/ clothing ]
                      Also, bring along a cancelled blank check so you know routing numbers . . . . .

            This is a partial list and hopefully gets you thinking.
            A friend of mine who could tell horror stories about Katrina and her family...
            OMG -    Nightmare.     I promised i would learn from her and her Pain,
                Frustration and Suffering.     She & her husband argued as to whether
                they had StateFarm or Allstate Insurance.    They agreed "State"
                was in the title, but getting through to anyone was impossible.
                She has since died from cancer.    Really, really, painful last few years
                dealing with all kinds of insurance, and trying to re-build everything.

            So - Be Proactive.

            Keep bottled water and power bars hidden in the back of your car.
            [or replenish if your eat everything]
            Keep a shovel during Snow & Fire Season.
            A blanket.
            Flash light.

            C A S H $ $ $ $
             Keep a cash stash at home.   If there is a HUGE emergency;
            wave CASH and you go the Front of the Line.     Even in semi-normal
            weather -   bank card machines go out in local settings so magnify
            the problem.

                     You need GAS...    Cash.
                     Food for Children - Cash
                    Cheap Hotel for couple days till "Storm" passes   -   Cash.

            Making A PDF

            EASY ! the best FREE   software in the world comes from NITRO [great name]
            and you can download from C-NET -   the PC Authority for about 30+ years now.

http://download.cnet.com/1770-20_4-0.html?query=nitro&platform=Windows%2CMac%2CiOS%2CAndroid%2CWebware%2CMobile&tag=srch&search

        the energy around us now requires us to THINK and Be Pro-Active.
        Not to mention - The Weather.. .. ..

        I think all of you know that one of my hero's this Lifetime, is the Buddha.
        He taught that Suffering - is optional.     Boy - do i agree with that.
        So if reading this, helps to diminish your pain & suffering - even alittle,
        Buddha would be thrilled i think.

        and my old, fave employer may also have some words of wisdom for you.
        i like the graphic.. .. ..

Everything we’ve been told about food and exercise for the past 30 years is dead wrong.

5/14/2014

     Everything we’ve been told about food and exercise for the past 30 years is dead wrong.

       Article : Good Read. Take Everyone to the Movie. What i find amazing is how most
       people make zero connection between the impact of the Weather and Food
       Production ~ whether the huge lime shortage for cinco de mayo [CALIF drought]
       higher price for Beef, Chicken, Pork. Also drought - no grass! feed to expensive.
        Herds sold off. Water shortage for Irrigation out West. etc etc etc

          the sugar industry is acting like the tobacco industry - back in the day.. .. ..

          Movie Website:     http://fedupmovie.com/#/page/home

Santa Fe subject CBS News’ Sunday Morning 5-18-2014

5/14/2014

    Santa Fe subject CBS News’ Sunday Morning 5-18-2014

     5/14/2014    SANTA FE, N.M. (KRQE) - Fans of the show, CBS News’ Sunday Morning will
     appreciate this one.           The anchor of the national broadcast, Charles Osgood, is here in New Mexico filming a special show set to air
     this weekend.

       The design show featuring Santa Fe will air this weekend, starting Sunday morning at 8.

        link to rest of article:

         CBS’ Sunday Morning show filming in Santa Fe            CBS’ Sunday Morning show filming in Santa Fe

Home Made Laundry Detergent

5/13/2014

     No more over over-priced; laden with chemicals and phosphate - [which is terrible for everything; your hair,
    your skin, your clothes.....]     laundry detergent.   I actually tried to read the ingredient list for Unscented Arm
    & Hammer... only a Chemist could tell you what is in there.       PLUS - here in New Mexico our water is
    beyond hard.    i rinse everything couple times.     In summer, i will take the water hose to drown-rinse my
    clothes [also waters my trees - kindda] on the clothes line.

      So - web hunting recipes for natural laundry detergent.    And they are all very similar :

1 cup the ancient 20 mule team borax. [ i mean my Mom used this in the 50's!] cost $4.oo
1 cup Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda 55 oz. cost $4.oo
1 cup Epsom Salt [softens water and acts like rinse agent] 4 or 5 lbs at WalGreen - $3.00

     Now ~ some folks say to go buy a bar of Dr. Bonner All Natural Castille Soap.   Grate very fine and add to
mixture.    i am too lazy to spend that much time grating.   Just blend up his Liquid Soap and put small squirt
     in the Soap Dispenser.

     Because this powder blend is so pure ~   GUESS how much you use?        1/4 Cup.
     also REALLY good in the HE machines.    low suds

    Also - forget Fabric Softner.   I have NEVER liked Fabric Softener or dryer sheets.    Too much SMELL.
    Detergent is one smell. Fabric Soft is a second - Dryer a third.    YUK. I think the combo smells stinky.
    And L - i- n- g- e- r- s    on   clothes.

    Just use plain old white distilled vinegar instead of smelly softeners and pour into fabric softener dispenser.
     The vinegar is a great rinse agent and does something - i forget exactly what - but changes the ph level to
     something more skin sensitive friendly.
         [chemistry - Never my long suit]

     And instead of the dryer and electric or gas bill and heating up the house. Use a Clothes Line.
     I LOVE the smell  of my clothes after being on the line and getting fresh air & sunshine.      Pillow cases
     especially.     I can count on one hand the times i have used my dryer.     When day time heat is more
     than i can handle in the summer, i wash clothes late in the day and let them dry overnight when
     the air is cooler and things don't fade either.

        you can buy 20 mule team borax, &   Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda 55 oz. in the
        Detergent Section  at Wal-Mart for Cheap; like $4/each. ..   and Epsom Salt at Wal-Mart.

        Amazon wants $9.oo   http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0029XNTEU/debtfreeadventure-20

        and if you scroll down you can see the Borax Box.

         reference:     http://www.diynatural.com/homemade-laundry-detergent-soap/

Week-End Energy for Mother's Day ! ! ! 2014

5/9/2014

Week-End Energy for Mother's Day ! ! !

So the sun is in Taurus - grounding. patient.
And the Moon will be in Libra. ahh - Sign of Harmony & Balance. So no arguments. No drama.
I think everyone could encourage their mom to completely Nurture Herself.

LONG soak in Bath Tub.
Quiet time to read a good book or every page of Sunday paper with NO interruptions.
Everyone takes turns bringing her coffee or tea or glass of wine and she does not have to do that, for anyone ~ as she normally does.
Buy her a Gift Card for a Massage ! ! ! woo-hoo!

Enjoy Mother's Day Holiday ! ! ! !