Why can't a CNA just be a CNA?

Nursing Students CNA/MA

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Since I have never worked in the health care system maybe someone can please educate me about this because I am having trouble understanding the CNA title in and of itself.

For one thing why does this position fall under so many different labels? I have seen CNAs be called LSNs, STNAs, GNAs, bedside nurses, orderlies, patient care assistants, tech partners, clinical nurses and a few more I can't think of off the top of my head. I just don't get why a CNA can't simply be called a CNA. I mean an RN is an RN and an LPN might get changed to a LPN but that's about it (at least I haven't seen anything else.). It also makes the job hunt a real pain in the wahzoo because depending on what a place calls their aides the place might not even come up! So I have to keep punching in all these different titles into the search engine just to get more job hits.

Another issue I'm having is the whole getting a license process. Many hospitals hire technical partners that require you to draw blood, EKGs, pulse ox, glucose readings plus all sorts of other diagnostics along with CNA duties as well and they don't need a license yet, a person who is working at an LTC and not doing any of that and just basic care needs to be licensed? That just doesn't seem right to me. Plus it's not like CNAs get paid heaps more money just because they have their license.

I know one hospital near me hired Technical Support Partners and CNAs. In the orientation we asked what the difference was. The HR rep said there was no difference. Same job duties, same pay, same scrubs, even the same training. The ONLY difference was that after the training period was done the people in the CNA group could sit for the boards and the tech partner group couldn't. When drilled a little further about this he said because of some health organization's rules only CNA's could work at one of their campuses and the rest didn't need to be licensed to work at the other campuses.

I guess what I'm trying to say is I wish there was some uniformity in this career path. You attend a college or a hospital or the Red Cross and receive your training and hospitals have RN's, LPN's and CNA's and if nursing students want in on it then call them Nurse techs and that's it!

Ok lol sorry for this rant but I hope a more experienced CNA can help me out with this because it's a tad confusing right now. :confused:

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Welcome to the world of healthcare. Don't think for one minute that in many cases this move to blow smoke is not deliberate. A rose by any other name.....

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I was wondering since being a CNA involves less desirable work that a lot of it was employment euphemisms.

Kind of like an air conditioner repairman is now a climate control technician.:rolleyes:

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To a certain extent that is the case. I find that the use of nicer sounding titles is found often in the hospitals that desire to distinguish their working environments from the undesirable nursing homes and the stigma attached to working in them.

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

And garbage men are "sanitation engineers", janitors work in "environmental services", and bank tellers are "customer services representatives".

I say, as far as commonsense English language usage is concerned, that the excretory material has made physical contact with the oscillatory ventilation system, and those who prefer to engage in decorous badinage derive enormous satisfaction from sending the rest of us on an untamed ornithoid journey without cause. ;)

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And garbage men are "sanitation engineers", janitors work in "environmental services", and bank tellers are "customer services representatives".

I say, as far as commonsense English language usage is concerned, that the excretory material has made physical contact with the oscillatory ventilation system, and those who prefer to engage in decorous badinage derive enormous satisfaction from sending the rest of us on an untamed ornithoid journey without cause. ;)

I love your wording.

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So I just started my CNA training course tonight and it ROCKS! The teacher is super sweet and extremely helpful and everyone in my class is great.

Aside from that I learned that a CNA is not really a CNA in the state of PA. Apparently from what I understand when you take the state board you don't get certified in anything you just get your name on a nurse registry list. In the end my instructor said that it's one of those "If you reeeaaalllyy want to get technical" kind of deals, but as for job listings it's CNA, but some strict facilities will only allow you to be called an NA.

However from what I found all states have this nurse registry list so what's the deal about not being certified?

I know this is stupid to think about and dwell on but it just eats at me a little.

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