RN's forced to do CNA work

[rnckr]

I am a new nurse and was wondering if this is a standard practice. When my floor needs to use a CNA to sit with a patient, they often have an RN take on the CNA's job for that shift. The RN no longer does any RN work for that shift, they only do what the CNA would do. Their pay stays the same but their duties change for that shift.

I have great respect for CNA's. They have an essential and very hard job, but I don't want to be one. That's not what I went to school for. Is this a normal practice?

[ElizaW]

There is no such thing as "CNA work" It's all nursing. The part within the CNA scope of practice gets delegated to the CNA but that doesn't mean that the nurse is no longer responsible for those tasks. It just means that she has more time to focus on the tasks that the CNA isn't trained to do.

[jadelpn, LPN, EMT-B]

With an RN being a floor floater, there is someone who can answer a call bell and intervene no matter if the patient needs to go to the bathroom or needs a new IV put in, needs pain med or turn and repositioned. It is often why a charge nurse doesn't take an assignment, to be an extra set of hands. It does make a larger assignment for the other nurses, but if you can have the assistance of another RN to help with a wider variety of patient care tasks, then it could make for lighter work all the way around. Much like a team nursing concept. Some shifts it may seem like all one is doing is tasks that could be defined as CNA duties, but patient safety and care is everyone's job.

In my facility, we are total care nurses, and don't have IV teams, CNA's on most shifts, respitory therapy, etc. If we do have a CNA it is only one of them, and they can't be everywhere to everyone. So we are ultimately responsible for every aspect of patient care, regardless if the CNA is available to help or not. It is not unheard of to have 2 nurses giving a patient a shower or doing peri care.

[BlueDevil,DNP, DNP, RN]

My last 8 years of practice as a RN, we didn't even have CNAs, lol. We did it all. That is neither here nor there. The bottom line is, you get paid to do what your supervisor asks you to do. You are qualified, it is a "safe assignment." Your complaint is invalid.

[JZ_RN]

When I first read this I was like, Uhhh, you can do everything the CNA does, don't demean CNAs, I was one before I was an RN. Then I read what she was saying and it does seem foolish. Have the nurse sit (what a dream shift) or float someone from another unit.

I have absolutely no problem doing what some people consider "CNA work". I'm not gonna let my RN duties suffer (I have to check IVs, do wound care, pass meds, etc. etc., before I can be answering every call light or changing or bathing patients) But if there's no CNA to do things like peri-care, changes, baths, etc., it still has to be done, I'll finish my work and help everyone, we're all a team and the patient needs care, no matter what the issue is.

[joanna73, BSN, RN]

It depends where you work. I work in LTC. About 8 months before I started my position, they had an RN and 2 Aides at night. Really, three is required on nights in order to properly care for the residents. But there is one RN and one Aide after 23:30. So aside from completing my RN work, I answer call lights, toilet people, make beds, reposition and wash people. Those are the expectations, and I don't mind, since I can assess and interact with the resident. Same when I was on the 80 bed med surg unit. We had 3 aides, so the nurses were responsible for providing all the care. More and more, this is the case.

[ThePrincessBride, MSN, RN, NP]

Sitting isn't all fun and rainbows. I work as a sitter and a CNA and I think in some ways, being a sitter is much more difficult because you cannot leave the patient.That said, from a financial standpoint, what the OP is describing does seem ridiculous.

[realmaninuniform]

Where I work, the nurses jump at the opportunity to work as an aide! After running charge tomorrow, I will fill in as an STNA for 4 hours on another floor. I am a newer nurse, about 6 months on the job, and before that I was a STNA for over 2 years, and a damn good one. At times, I miss being an aide! It is alot more physical, less desirable work for less pay, but it carries a certain amount of satisfaction and minimal responsibility. It doesn't require alot of critical thinking either. I've always said, if I could make a nurses wages for doing nurse aide work, I'd never become a nurse. So needless to say, if they're going to pay me nurse wages to work as an STNA I'll do it everytime. Plus it's third shift, so there's really nothing to do. If you're concerned about merely sitting with ONE patient, as if it's below you, then you really need to take a time out, a long hard look in the mirror, and reconsider your career path... It really concerns me when nurses act like that, and makes me question their education, motivation, and dedication! I think one of the best things that nursing programs have done in recent years is making students become aides first. Unfortunately, alot of the little brats going to college on their parents dime, never actually work as an aide, just get the certification and cruise their way through nursing school. They think nursing is a real easy job with great pay. Well, let me tell ya, I could go to a factory, where I'm not responsible for the lives of numerous patients, and make as much if not more than what I do as a nurse. I love it when people, esp paramedics, emts and the like talk about how we're just in it for the money. PLEASE! I made more money in sales and management than I do as a nurse, but I feel a hell of alot better about what I do as a nurse, and that's what it is about!

[RNperdiem, RN]

I think it is very thoughtful of your employers to try to fill the CNA spot if the CNA gets pulled to a sitter case.

Most places would just leave you an aide short and expect you to just deal with it.

[Hygiene Queen]

I get excited when I get to work as an aide!

I used to dream I could do CNA work for RN pay, and now I do.

I have always loved being a CNA and could care less about how "financially smart" it is for the facility...

I just relish the one time their mismanagement works in my favor!

[Good Morning, Gil]

Not unheard of, and in my previous job, we would take modified assignments and do total care for fewer patients if a CNA called off or they were short on CNA's, so similar situation, but not the same obviously.

This isn't an everyday thing, is it? If it is, they're going to burn out their RN's; seems like they already have a hard time retaining CNA's at your place of work, and RN's will burn out and leave for the reasons you mention if it's a common practice; you want to be a nurse since that's what you are.

Best of luck to you! Hang in there, and whatever you do, don't gossip about it at work or talk about how annoying it is. Just do your work. You don't want anything to get back to your manager, especially with you being new. You want to be perceived as awesome and positive and all of those things everybody loves lol.

[FutureRNGreen]

I swear wish i can like your status @loriangel14 a hundred times because it seems like some nurses when they get RN behind they name they act like they to good and i would have to bring them back to the norm in a nice nasty way

[NickiLaughs, ADN, BSN, RN]

I ended up floating to the ER once and ended up as a sitter with a 5150 for 12 hours. I thought it was ridiculous that they'd rather pay me 3x a rate then trying to find a CNA available in the hospital. I learned later we were very very short on CNAs that night and had 4 patients that required a sitter. So I wasn't the only one with that job. My personal belief is that they would rather be safe and regardless of staffing, they would probably much rather have you working as a nurse, but ultimately don't have a choice. Easiest but most boring 12 hours of my life.