CNA to LPN School Worries

[Thujone]

i think i hate certain aspects of being a cna. today, i came in as a prn worker, and i have one patient resident who will start crying over the slightest little things, and one can not understand her because she tried to kill her self and ended up in a hospital and pulled an esophageal tube of some sort out of her throat. she would cry over a fly on the wall. another man has one leg and the other cut off up to the knee, and i had never transferred a patients with only one leg from their bed to their wheel chair, so i was having difficulty doing it, and then he just told me to "get someone who knows what there doing in here," which kind of ****** me off, but i explained to him that i had never done this before and that i would tell his nurse, or his cna (which was on break, and i was just filling in for him.) there are some patients that do no want me simply because i am a male. i am a fairly new cna, about 2 months, and i work prn about 2 to 4 times a month which is not very much at all. that said, i had probably 4 or 5 patients that were total care, and i loved caring for them because i could do things my way, and the rest of my patients loved me as their cna which makes me very happy. i am going into a lpn program this fall, and i am very worried that i am wasting my time and will end up miserable for the same reasons that i am having problems with now. what do y'all think?

[azcna]

Being a nurse will be much different than a CNA, but you still get to deal with cranky patients. It sounds like you just need more experience! Once you start getting the hang of things everything will go more smoothly, you will become more efficient, and you will experience more types of patients.

I know it's frustrating right now, but it will get better!

[luv-of-kids]

I agree, it will get better. The cna experience is great to have, in my opinion it's makes you a better nurse. As far as a lot of patients not liking you because your male, that will decrease too when you become a nurse. Remember the cna does the more personal care (bathing, toileting etc..) so most woman prefer another female for that. They will see you in a whole different light when you are their nurse. If possible, try picking up a few extra shifts a month. CNA work is very difficult and fast paced so it takes awhile to get your routine. God bless!

[futurenurseOB]

I have been in your position many times although I'm not a male. Things will get better. I finish lpn school in 9 wks and I'm happy. Furthering your education is a great thing to do. And being a c.n.a. beforehand is an invaluable advantage u will need. Plus u will learn to appreciate the c.n.a.s under ur supervision

[ArrowRN, BSN, RN]

my wife is also a new CNA, working about 3 weeks and its been really hard. They keep running her from one floor to the next even though she scheduled on a floor with 12 patients for her probation, she sees a lot more and its getting her frustrated due to their lack of proper training and coordination. The other problem she has is some of the other CNAs are relatives of the LPNs so there a lot of favoritism going on, in other words, the old CNAs are bossing the new cna around to do everything or else they go to their family and report it, she help them on their floor with everthing, by the time she get to her stuff, noone comes to help her out. After realizing how hard CNA work is, she finally plans to go the LPN route, I've been telling her that for a long time, but she finally saw that most of the LPNs only dispense meds and chart records and that pretty much it. Some people can stick with this but for others, cna work is just not for them. I would move on to LPN or even RN. The cna experience is a plus for getting into LPN school and 1 of year CNA would look good on yr resume when u graduate from LPN school so try to keep at it even part time.

[HazelLPN, LPN]

I am retired LPN and I worked MICU for many years we we cared for suicide attempts...mostly intensional overdose. I do miss critical care nursing, but I'm glad I don't have to deal with gastric levage or the emotional pain that the families suffer during that time. The patient who attempted suicide and cries all of the time who pulled out her ETT probably had to do with the fact that these tubes are uncomfortable vs she was trying to suffocate herself. If she really needed her tube, they would have sedated her very well. Pts often extubate themselves when we are decresing their sedation and rate, most likely she was breathing above the vent and she was ready to come off. She should have had a psych consult on admission to MICU when she became stabilized and ready to go up to the floor. If you take care of her again, its your right to ask your supervising LPN or RN about the patient and they should be happy to explain the situation to you.

It seems to me you are frustrated with things that you don't yet understand and experience and nursing school will help with that. For example, if the lady keeps crying, then your responsiblity as a CNA is simply to observe and report to an LPN or an RN who will then assess the patient on what that patient needs. As a substitute CNA, you probably feel helpless. One you get more experience and understand how to help your patients, you won't feel so frustrated. As for being male, I am a very strong advocate for men in nursing. My best friends at work were always the men and having men in the field has resulted in better pay and working conditions and much needed diversity. If you are concerned about something or uncomfortable, ask the licensed staff and they should be happy that you are interested enough to care about your patients in this way.

Best to you,

Mrs H.