Any CNAs of former CNAs here? I have a question about working in a nursing home

dallet6 · Sep 30, 2009

try posting or moving this to the cna discussion board

CynicallyVexed · Sep 30, 2009

It's alright if you have patiences, it's like running a day care really. Lots of dementia patients have insomina where they think they have to get home to their family or their newborn baby boy. It can be challenging, they wonder often, and you have to check on them often. Sometimes they wake up and they forget how to pull their pants down to go to the bathroom or their roommate comes in ****** off cause the light is on and they start arguing... all of this I have experienced before. Sometimes they are given stuff to help them sleep at night and are usually perfectly mobile without the meds, but at night you can't put the side rails up on them and they will attempt to get out of the bed and I've had 2 patients to break their arms from falls.

I hope you are not the only CNA. When I was a CNA on graveyard 11-7, there was another CNA with me and a LPN for 24 patients. We had the lowest CNA/pt ratio because they get up and do crazy stuff at night and trying to keep up with them with just 2 cna's to 24 patients was hard. But the endless night conversations you have with some of them are some of the memories you'll take with you when they are gone.

Coriander, BSN, RN · Sep 30, 2009

Two disclaimers: I wasn't a CNA, and our facility was a residential facility for Alzheimer's/Dementia patients only. :)

I worked as a Program Leader, essentially a supervisor for the caregiving team. When needed, I would fill in if a caregiver called out sick, or if the team needed another set of hands. This included a few graveyard shifts.

We had several residents who had troubles sleeping through the night, so often we'd have a small group in the dining area talking about whatever they wanted to talk about. We also had wanderers.

During the night, every two hours or when needed, we would do rounds and check on the residents. This included toileting, clean-up, and occasionally showers if things became a little messier than normal. If residents became suddenly ill during the night, that resulted in phone calls (made by me, or the other lead) to the nurse and/or 911.

It's extremely mellow on that shift, but you have to be super careful not to fall asleep and to be aware at all times. We had a locked facility, but had some sneaky residents that would decide that the woman in room X looked just like their wife, and... well, yeah. :)

Lupan · Sep 30, 2009

I spent 5 1/2 years on an Alzheimers unit. I agree that it is very close to a daycare center. Remember Murphy's law. If it can happen it will. Everything from eating BM to the resident calling for help cause "I'm having a baby". That was seven years ago and I still remember many of the incidents. I let names go but the person I remember. Now I am an RN working in LTC and those years as a CNA come in handy. You need to be on your toes all the time. And you will get out of it what you put into the experience. Good Luck!! :twocents:

xCNAheatherx · Oct 8, 2009

hey, im a cna and i work at a local assisted living community in the memory care unit. I used to work the 7a-3p shift but i recently switched to the 11p-7a shift due to better pay, but anywho...it takes a very patient and understanding person to work in an enviroment like that. i've seen varies co-worker get upset or become annoyed with our residents and it's really unprofessional. i truely believe that inorder to work in a dementia facility you have to be on your toes at ALL TIMES. we have all doors locked at all times, but if a resident presses on the door for more than 30secs the door will alarm and open(fire safety doors:banghead:) meaning that we have to dash to the door to redirect them back into the building. also, being that we are not a NURSING home,we do not have nurses in the building during the night, so if something would to happen, we would have to call our nurse on call and exectutive director.....it's a decent job, i mean i really enjoy it most of the time. once your there for a while you begin to develop relationships with these people and it's the worst situation when they pass away:crying2:....i love working with residents with dementia because i feel like i'm with them at the timeof their lives when they need someone the most and just remember that even though they may seem child-like at times, they are someone's mother/father and they are your elders so treat them with respect just like you would want someone to treat your elderly parents.good luck

ps...night shift is pretty great...just 2hr checks and we get our residents up in the morning

my2cents · Oct 8, 2009

great shift for that type of patients! there be times when 2 or 3 residents will stay up with you and pass out around 6am. LoL. I enjoy working with them, but be warn. BE ON GUARD! LoL