I quit my good paying job to attend a CNA class. Anyone else?

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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Hi everyone,

My friends and family think I'm crazy for quitting my job during a recession. I had the regular 9-5 job where I stared at the computer all day. I couldn't believe that dealing with redundant paperwork and running boring reports would be required of me for the rest of my life. After 3 1/2 years of doing this, I couldn't take it anymore!! So I quit! I gained 35 pounds in three years because of this job. I saw the drive and compassion in my coworkers and I just couldn't relate. I don't know about anyone else, but I want a job where I feel fulfilled at the end of the day. I figured healthcare would be a good option because you're not staring at a computer all day and you're actually ACTIVE. I figured the CNA training would be beneficial towards my future because I'm interested in the healthcare field. Does anyone else have a story similar to mine?

Specializes in LTC.
I have been in orientation this week, and really learning about my new job as a CNA and getting to experience it for the first time. I think I made a good decision going forward being a CNA and leaving the good pay behind (for now). The job is not too terribly hard, and the teamwork I've seen in the units makes me seriously consider staying at this LTC instead of jumping ship the first time a hospital calls. I've met some amazing aides and nurses who love the residents, and having an 8 to 1 ratio for aides to residents really helps as well. I don't know if I got lucky, but I know I was not expecting this job to be this nice. I will admit yes their are some very smelly moments, and my feet are killing me, but really what I have been doing makes it okay.

wow... what shift do you work?

Specializes in cna.

I have been a CNA over 3 years and it is a rewarding job but it can be diffecult also but if you enjoy making a difference than you made the right move.

fuzzy,

My permanent shift is 7 to 11 on sat and sun plus 1 evening shift a week. This week Orientation schedule has been off the wall this week, but I start my normal shift this weekend. I did notice I mistyped something though its an 8 to 1 ratio for residents to aides :) I'm sure y'all already figured that one out though :)

8;1 ratio? That's GREAT!!! Your are lucky!

Specializes in PACU, LTC, Med-Surg, Telemetry, Psych.

I had to quit a better paying job about 5 years back to do CNA, but it was more a matter of being forced to.

I was a waiter and bartender in New Orlean's French Quarter. I was on a on-call list for 2-3 hotels, a union, and an

agency. I did pretty well because I would get paid $80 to $300 per function plus tips in some cases. During busy season, I could work 2 days and have my rent. However, this work was also very seasonal and was dependant on being very aggressive and having good relations with bookers to keep working. It would not be uncommon for a large event to need 50 to 100 waiters or bartenders for an entire week. The schedule during those times was always pretty brutal where you would go in at 4am and not leave till midnight and have to turn back around and do it again the next day. Mind you, you also had to do this in a full tuxedo for all those hours and keep yourself clean and presentable which was a huge challenge with those kind of hours.

However, after Katrina, this bussiness stopped being profitable. I had trouble switching to ala carte waitering or bartending at the good facilities because the view that banquet waiters were lazy and the ageism and sexism that exists in that industry (to bartend/wait in the FQ, you have to know someone and it helps to be a female under 30 with nice, err.. looks.. or least be a young, hip guy.) Being over 30 with a bit of a belly, this was an excersise in frustration.

Fortunately, the summer before Katrina, I had alot of time off and a bit of money saved and decided to take a CNA course in New Orleans East. My thought was to do something different the next summer besides work at a cheap local place that does weddings or have to put up with this jerk guy that I used to stock coolers for.

I am glad I did. Where I winded up after Katrina, my CNA certificate gave me a job at a hospital. From there I went agency and started working contracts. I get to actually help folks out as opposed to giving rich, drunk tourists thier 5th gin and tonic so they can pee on Bourbon Street. I have recieved letters from some of the folks I have helped over the years that I save. I also do not have to wear that stupid, hot,uncomfortable tuxedo that doesnt cover your butt for hours upon end. That in itself is worth a cut in pay.

I have gotten to see people from all walks of life. I also have learned of the existance of other careers I would not have even considered before. For example, one place I worked in a ER watching psych patients while they waited for psych beds to come available. I managed to talk and get friendly with some EMTs, which will now lead to me taking EMT-Basic in the near future. This has been quite an adventure, at least for me. (I seem to get along and do better in the EMS culture other than nursing. Plus, nursing has huge waiting lists and horrid class schedules that make it hard to work and do.)

Sorry if it was long. That is my story. I hope it helps folks. But, do not stop at CNA. Do not be boxed into just LTC. You can do more than just that. You have the excellent opportunity to get the real lowdown on medical careers other than just listening to what others say who probably do not know.

Specializes in CNA LTC.
Making around 40k a year now in business, and sick of it. Passed my CNA course, passed my state exam, now just trying to get up the courage to accept a job offer that will cut my salary in half........need some encouragement here everyone.

Think about the excitement you felt going into the CNA course...:yeah:You can do this! Its the beginning of a new start = )

Hi everyone,

My friends and family think I'm crazy for quitting my job during a recession. I had the regular 9-5 job where I stared at the computer all day. I couldn't believe that dealing with redundant paperwork and running boring reports would be required of me for the rest of my life. After 3 1/2 years of doing this, I couldn't take it anymore!! So I quit! I gained 35 pounds in three years because of this job. I saw the drive and compassion in my coworkers and I just couldn't relate. I don't know about anyone else, but I want a job where I feel fulfilled at the end of the day. I figured healthcare would be a good option because you're not staring at a computer all day and you're actually ACTIVE. I figured the CNA training would be beneficial towards my future because I'm interested in the healthcare field. Does anyone else have a story similar to mine?

I took a cut in pay to become a nursing assistant (hopefully CNA soon) and I don't regret it. I actually didn't quit the organization I work for - it was a transfer from another department within the hospital where I work. I now work 12 hour shifts where I worked 8's before and had to take a drop in hourly rate, but it's all worth it, because I'm gaining hands-on clinical experience in patient care. I just finished the last of my co-req courses for nursing school and am on a local community college waiting list for nursing school..... going for an ADN to become an RN eventually.... I come home every night more tired than I did in my old job, but overall I am happier, and I honestly feel that I'm doing something that makes more of a real difference to people and their lives.

Yes, I'm quitting transcription after I finish CNA classes. We're going to eventually be downsized anyway due to EMR. I'm also sick of sitting on my butt all day in front of the computer. I'm really burnt out on it. I also know I'll take a cut in pay, but I'm bored silly, stressed and have gained weight as well. I need to get up and actually do something where I'm moving around.

I'm not the only one! I've been working as a secretary/bookkeeper for the past 3 1/2 years. I am so tired of sitting in front of a computer all day, and I agree with the other poster about this being way worse for my back then lifting patients! I have been taking my prereq's to eventually become an RN one at a time while working full time, and my boyfriend just graduated and started his job in June. Now it's my turn! I was just accepted into an LPN program that starts June 2010 (RN wait lists are too long), and now I am considering signing up for CNA classes. I know it's a hard, smelly job, but it's also a great way to gain clinical experience while I'm in the LPN program. I'm actually excited about the physical part though, just because I'm so tired of sitting around at my current job! Not only is it horrible for my neck and back, but also my eyesight, and definitely not good for my weight either! Working as a CNA will also be rewarding, which is more than I can say about being a secretary.

It's funny! In my area the LPN lists are longer than the RN program. I was a substitute teacher making $38/hr, but I was hardly ever called for an assigment. The money is less as a CNA, but constant.

After 30 years, and at the age of 50, i am eligible to retire from an excellent paying job. I have a ba in social work and and masters degree in administration.

During my vacation this summer i will be attending a cna class---to get a taste of the nursing profession. If everything goes well, i will try to enroll in lpn school during the spring of 2011. My husband is attempting to discourage me from pursuing these goals. Yes, he would like for me to retire from my present occupation because of the long hours i am putting in (mostly in our home office). However, he thinks i will not be able to physically hold up to the challenge of nursing. Also, due to my education and work experience, he thinks i am selling myself short in trying for cna, then lpn. He thinks i am crazy for wanting to start over at the lowest level.

For these reasons, i sometimes second guess my decision to retire from my present employment.

Has anyone else come to a cross-road similiar to this? If so, i would love to hear from you.

Thank you.

State auditor

Specializes in Geriatric.

Well, I am switching from attorney to CNA.

While I always wanted to work in a hospital environment, in college I focused on business and law classes. I spent my legal career helping people and working on high profile cases. However, after achieving an amazing result in my big case and then being pretty much screwed over by the law firm, I decided to stop working crazy hours, making myself sick just to make other people rich.

That, combined with my health problems and my father's cancer caused me to leave that job. After my father got better, I decided to volunteer at the hopsital where he was. The volunteers were so good to him and I wanted to give something back. Then I started taking gerontology classes and volunteering at the senior center.

I had been doing contract legal work, but with the bad economy, a lot of that work dried up. I had to find something to make money and get health insurance. When one of my sister's friends left her professional career to be a CNA, I thought, I could do that too!

So here I am! I will be starting my program on June 14 and I am so excited!

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