Why become a CNA? Be a Medical assistant instead

Students CNA/MA

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It sounds like you have had an awful experience as a CNA. I am 40 years old and have been a CNA since I was 20 and I love my job. I cannot work in a nurseing home because I am not strong enough to do transfers. I always strain my neck muscles and I am a wimp LOL. Some girls are strong but not me. I also dont like rushing around but I have never experienced the type of workload you are referring to. I did nurseing homes in my 20's but then I switched to home care and its great. I make $15 an hour and up. I live in Ct. The average pay in Connecticut for CNAs is $10 to $17 an hour. In homecare you only have the one client and you go to their home. I dont have to do lifts or transfers at all. I usually have alzheimer patients and they are ambulatory and can use the toilet unless they have an accident. No big deal. That doesnt bother me. My old lady cries if she soils herself. She feels bad. I help her into the shower and get her cleaned up and changed, throw the laundry in the washing machine and shes good to go. Sounds like you have allowed yourself to be taken advantage of and am now angry about it. If I was in a job like yours I would have left right away. You often get what you tolerate and I agree there are bad places to work but that holds true in any profession. I wouldnt trade CNA work for anything else. I have a friend who is an LPN and she doesnt make much more than me and she is paying on a student loan of $15 thousand dollars now. I dont want the debt or the added responsibility of her job. Im happy right where I am and if your thinking of being a CNA I think you should go for it and dont let anyone discourage you because there are great jobs out there, just dont settle for a bad one. No matter what you decide to do.

tiredstudentmom

162 Posts

Specializes in Medical Assisting.
I think you are very wrong here. I am a certified Medical assistant, and I have had no prolems finding jobs, however, there is no room to move up. I decided to go back to school and get my RN, but in order to do so I had to take the CNA classes... even though I am a medical assistant. You have to go back and start over from the begining. CNA, LPN, RN. My medical assisting classes were uselss for purposes of moving forward w/my career. It did give me good work history/background, but the money I spent would have been better spent on becoming and LPN first.

You do present a very valid argument that I had not considered. Some folks don't want to move on or up, but rather stay w/ being an MA for whatever reasons. I do share the same sentiment as you in regards to the money spent on school. The only class worth a darn was the clinical portion and even then, it doesn't really get you ready for the real thing. If one doesn't want to become a full fledged nurse, then MA is suitable. However, has you pointed out so succintly, it doesn't really prepare one for nursing. I was just pointing out that MA's are being utilized more and more in the offices and some people really prefer the office setting. Not all of us aim for the sky! I'm glad that you pointed out these aspects. It's good to gain a different perspective every once in a while. Thank you!

emijen2girls

48 Posts

What a disappointing post!

Why do you want to be in the health care field? To interact with doctors and other health care professionals or take care of people.

Cleaning poop and lifting is part of it.

If your grandma was in the hospital or nursing home and had incontinence wouldn't you be grateful for the aide/nurse who cleaned her up without making remarks? lovingly restoring her cleanliness and dignity? that when you came to the nursing home where people sometimes end up against their wishes (I do not think that anyone plans to retire in a nursing home), it doesn't smell?

I LOVE PEOPLE, that is why I do my job.

I started in the field working 7-11a only 3 days a week for $6/hr bathing elderly people at an assisted living facility. I was grateful to have a job, to help those souls who needed help.

Tali

Many others have said it but I'll say it again. Do yourself a favor and become a LPN instead. The time in school is the same (sometimes shorter) if your getting an A.A.S in MA, plus your paid a little more to do virtually the same job (minus pt assessment) and it's much easier to find a job as an LPN than it is as an MA.

uscgtrucker

15 Posts

One of the biggest problems I find with the CNA field is that people come into it thinking "how hard can it really be taking care of old people, all they do is sit around and watch tv all day". Swear to God I've heard that! They think its going to be easy breezy but when they find out whats really involved they turn and run. Had they just done even the slightest bit of research and talked to a few CNA's they couldve saved themselves months of heartbreak (and backache). I personally have 5 people that I'm close with that work in the CNA field that I asked LOTS of questions of before even signing up for school. Another problem is no two facilities are the same, you have good ones and you have bad ones, if you get into a bad one right from the get go its gonna turn you off to the profession the rest of your life no matter what anybody has to say about the "good" facilities. I've only been a CNA since Aug 09 and absolutely LOVE it. Yes alot of days are a challenge but I got hired by a great company and work at home with only 4 clients. The guys I work with are great and totally make it worth coming to work every day, even on the worst of days. I truely am sorry that the OP had a bad experience but this all couldve been avoided had a few questions been asked before jumping in with both feet

juliaann

634 Posts

Specializes in ICU.
Very rewarding career choice and some offices only hire MA's instead of nurses. Not sure exactly why, but they are. If you really want to do it, go for it! I didn't regret my choice...I love (most!) of our patients and that's why I'm in this biz. Go for it!:D

I guess this is why it's important to do local research first! In my area (Oklahoma) clinics almost exclusively hire LPNs over MAs, but I guess everywhere is different! I'm glad you've found what works for you, I hope some of the other people in this thread that aren't as happy with their job duties can find something they enjoy as well! :)

:nurse: Hi folks I just had to log in and reply to this one. I live in west Texas and know a little something about the healthcare field for my area. The facilities here use both Medical Assistants and Certified Nurse Aide, Licensed Nurses, and Registered Nurse of all levels. We have private schools offering Medical Assistant training; and Jr. Colleges and nursing homes offering Nurse Aid training.

Yes there are jobs availiable in these areas of healthcare. Yes there is some turnover in most areas. Some people do not like the jobs or can't do the job or move on to something else;but maybe still in healthcare.

I would encourge anyone that is interested working in the healthcare field to seek the right job for you. Jobs and people to work for or to work with are just as different as they can be. Educate your self to learne about your job and the ones around your such as the Dietary, the Rehab, Nursing and Management, to name a few.

I have been in health care for many, many years and I love it and I am proud to be a RN. When I started in healthcare there were Licensed and Registered Nurses and Medical Doctors and some other areas that were Licensed or Certified. Everything else was on the job training.

I started in a Hospital as a Ward Clerk or Secretary. I learned to transfer orders, and do other needed paper work for the Nurses and Doctors. After a short time there I knew for sure that I wanted to be a Nurse. It just clicked with me. I started working on the floor as a nurse aide, of course it was hard work. I challenged my self that I could do the job. I completed the Licensed Nursing Program; in Texas we call it LVN. I moved out of state and worked in other places as a LPN. Eventually I went to college and became a Registered Nurse.

The jobs I did early on were somewhat like a Medical Assistant and a Certified Nurse Aide. I have never request that someone working with or for me do something that I have not done.

One Director of Nurses would say "Work Smarter not Harder."

In boxing the Referee says, "Gentelmen Protect Yourself at All Times." This is good for us in healthcare.

Those wanting to be a Nurse often find that the Certified Nurse Aide training helps them to get into a college program. I think that unless one knows they are going to be very good at the college level work, going to a Licensed Nurse program will be good. Any healthcare training is great, some will learn quicker than others. If we did not have folks that are happy to work as aides or assistants we would be in bad shape. All or needed.

No, health care is not for everyone but for those of us that enjoy being caretakers and caregivers and love a job with a challenge that always has something New to learn, something different to do being in healthcare can be great.

Good Luck

Sart45

149 Posts

Just another situation...I received my CNA license Feb. '09. I thoroughly enjoyed the program (which only cost $500.00). We did our clinicals at a LTC facility. To be honest, I never wanted to work in that situation. I have since applied for over 50 CNA positions in hospitals and have not even gotten called for an interview! I'm in the Denver metro area which has many hospitals. I worked as a Unit Secretary for 4 years many years ago so have hospital experience more or less. I'm currently finishing up prereq's for nursing school and really want to get experience as a CNA but no experience/no job!

losgatos81

10 Posts

Hello:

I am finishing up my CNA course externship now (at a (very nice) LTC/rehab/hospice facility) and-all I can say is wow...wow, wow, wow.There is a special place in heaven for CNA's-no doubt about that.

For me, I chose the cna course over the med assistant because so many people told me it would make me a better nurse, so I am holding on to that belief. Tightly. Real freak'in tightly.

I told myself that today all while I was changing the brief on a practically immobile, 375+lb lady- and urine inevitably got all over, I told myself that when a resident told me they were going to bite me (for what-I don't know.) I told myself that when I was emptying a colostomy bag..... nothing can prepare you for that smell.

So Amen to the comment on school admins. glossing things over, BUT I am gonna stick with it, in the hopes that it will make nursing school easier. Also-now I have a better understanding of what I like/dislike.

For example, I found I liked the hospice side- and that was something I always swore I could never do...

(As far as I know, which may not be much :)) MA's primarily find work @ Dr.'s offices, CNA's sort of have more areas to choose from- so if you are considering Nursing -being a CNA may be a good way to discover where you fit in before you even start.

Just another situation...I received my CNA license Feb. '09. I thoroughly enjoyed the program (which only cost $500.00). We did our clinicals at a LTC facility. To be honest, I never wanted to work in that situation. I have since applied for over 50 CNA positions in hospitals and have not even gotten called for an interview! I'm in the Denver metro area which has many hospitals. I worked as a Unit Secretary for 4 years many years ago so have hospital experience more or less. I'm currently finishing up prereq's for nursing school and really want to get experience as a CNA but no experience/no job!

Most hospitals want you to have LTC experience because a lot of the patients end up in that environment. If you don't have LTC experience, most hospitals will pass your application. If you really want to gain experience as a CNA then you should apply to the LTC facilities anyway. You want the experience then take it anyway you can get it. You will learn so much from it. Once you get the experience that you need for hospital positions then you can apply for them. As of right now they most likely wont touch you because they have others who have either experience in the hospital or in LTC.

aztova

68 Posts

I agree. I have a CNA license it has to be the worst job possible. It is a totally underpaid job and a disgusting one as well. I would advise my worst enemy to go and become a CNA. Ugh. It actually helped me to decide that nursing most likely isn't for me because being a CNA is so gross.

lina.561

171 Posts

Just another situation...I received my CNA license Feb. '09. I thoroughly enjoyed the program (which only cost $500.00). We did our clinicals at a LTC facility. To be honest, I never wanted to work in that situation. I have since applied for over 50 CNA positions in hospitals and have not even gotten called for an interview! I'm in the Denver metro area which has many hospitals. I worked as a Unit Secretary for 4 years many years ago so have hospital experience more or less. I'm currently finishing up prereq's for nursing school and really want to get experience as a CNA but no experience/no job!

Put down your clinicals for your experience. I know its not much, but hey its something!

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