Any CNA's out there?

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Hey everyone!

I was thinking about becoming a cna while taking classes for my RN. If any of you started out as a cna, can you give me some information on how it was? I want to work in a hospital as a cna so would that even be possible? What about the type of units you worked on? Do they allow cna in the labor and delivery unit? Please share!

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Specializes in Critical Care, Trauma.

I have been a CNA for 3 years. I spent about 2 years at a SNF (long-term care) and have since been working on the orthopedic floor of a hospital. For me, being a CNA was a way to support myself while gaining experience in the nursing field. While doing all this grunt work, I have realized that I want to continue on to get my RN. In the hospitals I have worked at, CNAs have not worked in L&D, nurses and surgical techs normally take care of the work that would normally fall upon a CNA.

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I started out as a CNA before nursing school and it has been an invaluable experience. You will learn so much and it will help you get your foot in the door when you're looking for jobs later as an RN. It is possible to work in a hospital as a CNA, but in my state you need a CNA 2 certification. I've worked in a memory care and at a hospital on just about every unit. L&D, along with the OR, does not use CNAs. If you get a hospital job I highly recommend working in the float pool. You will get to work on a variety of units, learn about different patient populations, and find out what units you love...or aren't so crazy about.

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Thank you both for sharing! I am definitely going to get my cna cert while in nursing school. How were the hours for you guys? We're you able to work around your nursing school clinical hours? What were your job duties? Do you guys like working in a hospital or in home care better?

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I switched to a flex position when I started the nursing program, so I choose my own hours and am able to easily work around my school schedule. Flex positions in the hospital are difficult to come by, especially if you are new to the hospital setting. In-home care and nursing homes have better opportunities for new CNAs looking for a flexible schedule and part-time work. This may be different depending on where you live. Where I live, hospital CNA jobs are highly sought after and you have to compete against a very large number of applicants. I can't really speak to SNFs, since I have never worked in one and am not super familiar with their scheduling, or what a typical day looks like.

As a CNA your job duties will include; turning & changing patients, assisting with ADLs, checking CBGs & vital signs, removing foley catheters, performing bladder scans, answering call lights, assisting with dressing changes, and providing oral suction. Jobs outside the hospital have a more limited scope of practice and will consist mostly of assisting with ADLs, transferring patients in/out bed, and checking a minimal amount of vital signs. Even though the scope is more limited you will still be very busy and these can be stressful positions.

The hospital has a broader scope of practice, is a much faster pace, and you will learn to use more equipment. Sometimes you may be assigned as a patient safety attendant which can be a much slower pace (and sometimes boring) than working on the floor. However, this is a great opportunity to read the patient's chart to learn about the pathophysiology of their illness, learn medical terms, see how the different teams work together, and provide thorough patient care. You can essentially become an expert on that one patient. My experience working in memory care was very valuable, but I felt that my hospital job best prepared me for nursing school. I love my hospital job because of the fast pace, higher acuity patients, more involvement with the nurses, and opportunity to assist with rapid responses & code blues. No matter what setting you work in it will be busy, stressful, fun, and rewarding!

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Thank you so much for sharing the great info. I love in NC so I'm not too sure if the cna jobs will be difficult to get. I am also going to be volunteering at a hospital soon. Hopefully by me volunteering, I will have a good chance of getting hired while in school. I want all the hands in experience I can get! How long were your cna classes? Were they weeks? Or months? If you dont mind me asking, what state do you live in? I really want to work at a hospital instead of a in home ans I just hope it wont be too much of a challenge to work in a hospital. Okay nice! The duties aren't too bad and it'll help prepare me for RN. That's so awesome that you were able to schedule your own hours to fit your school schedule. When you were working as a cna in a hospital, were you able to float around to different units? I'm sorry you did mention you did work on almost every unit. Did you like a specific unit the best? Or all?

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.

Hi there! I was a CNA in a nursing home for about a year while working on prereqs. After getting a year of nursing home experience, I finally got a job in a hospital as an ER technician. I was an ERT for a year and a half while finishing up prereqs and for my first semester of nursing school. I have now been on the mother infant floor as a tech for about two months and will be going into my second semester of nursing school this coming Fall :) It has been completely doable. I wish I could work on L&D! But since I can't, I have fallen back on postpartum. Hopefully it will help me get my foot in the door once I become a nurse.

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Hi mindofmidwifery! Thank you for sharing. Wow that's so amazing that you are able to work in the mother baby unit! How do you like postpartum? I am hoping and praying to get a job in a hospital once I get my cna while going to nursing school. I will be starting my volunteering to "baby cuddle" soon so I'm super excited and hopefully that will help me get my foot in the door. How long did it take you to get certified as a cna? How are you liking nursing school? I believe this will definitely help you get your foot in the door and land your dream job!

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Specializes in ICU Stepdown.
Hi mindofmidwifery! Thank you for sharing. Wow that's so amazing that you are able to work in the mother baby unit! How do you like postpartum? I am hoping and praying to get a job in a hospital once I get my cna while going to nursing school. I will be starting my volunteering to "baby cuddle" soon so I'm super excited and hopefully that will help me get my foot in the door. How long did it take you to get certified as a cna? How are you liking nursing school? I believe this will definitely help you get your foot in the door and land your dream job!

I LOVE postpartum! It's definitely a huge change from the ER but I enjoy the atmosphere and caring for moms and babies. Depending on where you live, hospital CNA jobs are super competitive but I believe that if you persevere, you'll get one. Volunteering might be one way to get noticed; it'll definitely look good on your resume.

It took me a little over a month to get my CNA. The class itself was about a month and after that I just had to take the test. I'm having mixed feelings about nursing school. I love what I'm learning but I can't wait for it to be over!

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Specializes in CVICU/ED, CCRN-CSC, CFRN.
Thank you so much for sharing the great info. I love in NC so I'm not too sure if the cna jobs will be difficult to get. I am also going to be volunteering at a hospital soon. Hopefully by me volunteering, I will have a good chance of getting hired while in school. I want all the hands in experience I can get! How long were your cna classes? Were they weeks? Or months? If you dont mind me asking, what state do you live in? I really want to work at a hospital instead of a in home ans I just hope it wont be too much of a challenge to work in a hospital. Okay nice! The duties aren't too bad and it'll help prepare me for RN. That's so awesome that you were able to schedule your own hours to fit your school schedule. When you were working as a cna in a hospital, were you able to float around to different units? I'm sorry you did mention you did work on almost every unit. Did you like a specific unit the best? Or all?

In SC here, try reading this. It was my experience of working while in school! https://allnurses.com/ccu-nursing-coronary/new-grad-starting-1112474.html

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Specializes in Critical Care, Trauma.

I can't go to a flex position at my work, because I rely on my work for my health insurance and you have to work a 0.5 fte position minimum to qualify (20 hours per week part time). I am switching to a part time position in preparation for nursing school. I'm taking a 2 day a week position and my managers and coworkers don't mind if I work only weekends. Haha. I can always pick up extra hours if I need to and am able.

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Wow thats so so amazing! Thank you so much helpfulgradnurse. How are you liking icu? I want to work in labor abs delowcer once I grad. I heard labor and deliver units dont allow Cnas but I will be volunterring in the nursery to baby cuddle soon so hopefully that will help me too. Plus I love love love babies and helping people.

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