After working a year as a CNA at a nursing home which I really enjoy, I applied to and received an offer to work at a local hospital. Needless to say, I am ecstatic! The hospital is much closer to home (fifteen minutes) rather than an hour away. The shorter drive will be a pay raise in and of itself from the gas money saved. Not to mention the time spend driving back and forth, it gets old. Obviously the job is contingent on a successful pre employment physical (scheduled), completion of the background check (paperwork in), and completing orientation.

Anyway, the thing that worries me a little is the lift test. I guess the nursing home never required a lift test, despite all the lifting we do (though we use sit-stand lifts and full body lifts with anyone who needs regular lifting and can't help). It is divided into 8 separate lift 'trials' starting at 15lbs, and ending at 70lbs. When it says the lift is 'floor to knuckles' is that where your knuckles are when you are standing with your arms naturally to your side? I keep livestock so I do a lot of lifting at home, with stuff like hay bales, bags of grain, etc. but I think even raw lifting 70lbs might be a bit of a struggle. You should have seen me the day the feed mill gave me 100lb bags of grain rather than 50lb bags, I darn near broke myself!

The pre employment physical may also require a respiratory fit test. I assume it will be required, because it is checked on the packet I have to bring along. What is that? Running? I can do a lot of walking, but when it comes to running, I am lame. Though I have been known to sprint quite fast when I see a resident jump out of their wheelchair about to do a faceplant!

Any advise or insight would be fantastic!

Not sure about the lift tests as each of mine were different, but the respiratory fit test will be for a N95 PPE mask since there is a chance you could be exposed to TB while working.

Oh cool. I was thinking it was a fitness test from the sound of it!

I am both very anxious and excited for this hospital CNA job. Though it will be very different! I like the nursing home I work in currently, especially my coworkers since everyone is a team player. But this will be a good change. Shifts will be 12 hour versus 8 hour in the nursing home, but also, I won't be driving for two hours total each night (one there, one back). I live in a rural area where massive snowfall make the roads dangerous on a regular basis, and animal/vehicle collisions are everyday. One night, came inches away from hitting a black bear on my way to work! So a fifteen minute drive to work reduces the risks, too.