Nursing student who hates her job as a nursing assistant, help?

[michigan94]

I've been working as a nursing assistant for about 2 years now, 1 year at a nursing home then the past little over a year in a hospital on a med/surg floor. Im going to school for my RN and feel very fortunate to have gotten into a hospital and it's been a good experience but I'm so tired of being a cna. Most of the nurses don't help out and do not ever answer any call lights not to mention many of the aides I work with aren't good workers so I feel like I'm constantly running around taking care of everyone's patients. I don't mind taking someone to the bathroom or giving a bath but it gets tiring to go in one room after another taking people to the bathroom almost all day long. I'm in so much pain when I get home from lifting and turning people all day and sometimes without help when I could use it. And I feel like as an aide there is only so much I can do to help the patient, and I'm starting to get more and more annoyed when patients complain to me about something they need from a nurse or doctor when I can't do anything about it but ask them and have no control. Im tired of busting my butt the way I have been, but I still have another year before I start clinicals and my job pays well and it's how I make a living. Part of me wants to quit and work at a restaurant or something through school, but the idea of quitting my job makes me nervous. I know that I don't want to work at this particular hospital when I graduate but I just don't know if it would look bad in the future if they saw that I quit my nursing assistant job. I've learned a lot and my coworkers have always complimented me on my work, but I'm just starting to care less and less and can feel myself getting more annoyed with the patients. I do think I still want to be a nurse because there's so many different places I'll be able to work and even though they have a harder job I still think it isn't as back breaking and exhausting as mine. I really don't know what to do. I know that my time is coming slowly to where I won't need to be an aide anymore, but it's getting difficult to even wake up in the morning to come do my job. Has anyone else ever had this problem? What should I do?

[cleback]

I wouldn't quit. Being employed at the hospital will open doors to you at graduation, if ýou see yourself working in acute care. But I totally ūnderstand how exhausting the work can be.

Do you have a tele monitor watcher or unit secretary position where you work? Both would be less physical and may be a nice break, even if you have do a mix of telewatching/desk duty as is often the case at my facility.

If that's not a possibility, maybe a transfer to peds or post partum? Lighter patients to lift, for sure.

[Pangea Reunited, ASN, RN]

Maybe you need a vacation? Most of the things you complain about (if not all) are going to get worse when you actually start working as a nurse. It is back-breaking and exhausting. You might get out of the back-breaking part if you work in the NICU.

I've been off work for almost six months and I feel like I'm still recovering.