Here is the current issue I am dealing with as a recently certified nursing assistant. I accepted a job from a major company in a skilled nursing facility, it's a bit of a shady place when it comes to a lot of issues that are presently there. I've been seeing a lot of things going on, that shouldn't be going on, I've reported things, but not too much has been done. I've been looking for another job, but I as a new CNA, nothing offers me the good hours and the good pay I have at this job.
Anyways, we had a meeting last week about a family complaint. A family member said that a CNA was toileting, and changing her mother without using gloves. The meeting was just basically saying, that if there's ever a family member present, and you're going to provide care, ask them to leave because of the patients right to privacy, unless the patient says they can stay, and if that situation comes up, to always get someone else in the room as a witness. I said to myself, "that's a little bit gross, who changes someone's brief without using gloves?" Although where I work is a bit shady, I really honestly don't see someone not using gloves while changing a dirty brief.
Later that day my supervisor came up to me, and asked me where my gait belt was. When I was trained, the person that trained me, lifted someone without using a gait belt, and I asked her where her gait belt was, she said she never uses one, and she didn't know where to get one. She has worked there for two years. There's usually one down by the nurse's station, but that day I didn't grab it.
My supervisor says to me, "I swear to god if I get in trouble for you guys not doing your jobs correctly..." A patient was in the hallway, and she asked the patient if anyone ever put one of them on her. The patient said, "that goes on your foot, right?" which made me giggle because it pointed out to me my supervisor was clueless as to which patients were mentally functional and which ones weren't.
My supervisor goes on to say, she was putting a particular gait belt in the patient's room, so everyone knew to use that gait belt on her.
I said to myself, okay, well, when I went to school, I was taught how to use a gait belt, so I should do everything the way I was taught, but at the same time, the person that trained me, had worked there for two years, and didn't know where one was, so this issue in my opinion should have been fixed a long time ago, not when a family member complains, so they can cover themselves up.
Now, keep in mind the family members are a little bit demanding when it comes to how they want things, which is fine, because I can understand their frustration, of their mother being sick and all that.
We gave her a brand new chair to suit her needs, special cream to help her itchiness. We moved furniture over(there's two to a room) so they could have extra room, so they could put a chair beside the bed for them to sit down.
The other day, her family members were there, and I made it a point to tell them that I didn't want to bother them, so whenever they were ready to leave to let me know, so I could get her ready for bed, to avoid providing care while the family member was there.
She let me know her mother was ready for bed, and when I entered the room, they were complaining about her new wheelchair and how big it was, and asking why she needed that particular gait belt. I said, that if there were any questions to ask my supervisor. She than left, I gathered my supplies to prepare her for bed...and the gait belt had gone missing. I checked all her drawers, dressers, bathroom, even her roommates drawers and dressers. I notified my nurse, and wrote a letter to my supervisor.
I said to the patient, "where's your gait belt?"
she said, "what's that?"
I said, "you know that thing that I put around you when I pick you up?"
She said "My daughter took it."
I said, "where'd she put it?"
She said, "I don't know."
Weather or not her account of what she saw was correct or incorrect in unknown to me. But this is very frustrating, because I have a strange feeling, that this family member is trying to get me in trouble for whatever reason it is. I feel like she took it because she didn't want her mother to use it, after she made all these complaints.
I called the CNA who worked during the day shift to try and figure out at what time this gait belt went missing, I'm not trying to jump to conclusions. There was no response. But she obviously at some point during my shift, saw this gait belt.
Has anybody else had to deal with family members like this? Possibly trying to lye about nurse's or CNAs?
Can anybody tell me some personal experiences they went through, and how they handled it? Any responses would be great.
