cna requirements are becoming more like housekeeping

[a "too caring" c]

I am a cna, 52 years old, I wanted to do this because i love to help people and try and make a difference. I knew I was too old to persue a RN carreer so I only went for cna. I find that it's more like housekeeping than caring for the residents. Do others find this or should I seek other employment. Have had 3 jobs, all were the same. Lots of laundry, dining rm , trash.

[yousoldtheworld]

What kind of facilities have you worked in? And what shifts? While I've always had to help out in the dining room (and that is to be expected) and take oout the trash at the end of the shift (also to be expected), the majority of all of my jobs have been patient care based. Especially first and second shifts.

It might be annoying to have to take out trash or do everything in the dining room, but if facilities had to hire enough housekeeping staff to do all of this for every resident, every day, we would all make a lot less money and have even less staffing in nursing.

When I work thirds in the small secure unit I work on now, I do do some laundry, but I never have before and it isn't the bulk of the job.

I guess I don't mind it...but if you are working someplace that you honestly feel housekeeping is the bulk of your job, then I'd definitely look elsewhere.

[a "too caring" c]

I am working at an assisted living on 2nd shift. Yes the bulk of the job is laundry. Table cloths, napkins, sheets, towels, wash cloths, plus the residents that have baths, do their laundry and changing their beds, washing more sheets. Resident clothes are put on top of the laundry list, i can understand that. But yea, I can't do good patient care for them expecting the laundry to be caught up, when 3rd shift has been caught sleeping at nite. I'd like to see me even set down, let alone sleep! I am new and don't want to cause static, I have done been accused of being partial to one resident that don't have noone, or no socks even to wear, I bought her some and some pajamas at a good will and was harrassed by the other cna/s so i am trying to not cause a fuss.

[VivaLasViejas, ASN, RN]

Working in assisted living is different from a nursing home, and that's because the populations are different. In ALFs, the residents are generally less dependent, so care staff perform more of a homemaking role than anything else. In long-term care there is some 'housekeeping', e.g. serving meals and tidying resident rooms, but you also do toileting, bathing, dressing etc. plus range-of-motion, skin care and other tasks as assigned by the charge nurse.

Typically, ALF staff do not need to be CNAs, not even to pass medications (which is kind of scary sometimes!). If you're working in an ALF and unsatisfied with the job, why not try a nursing home, or even a hospital? Acute care CNAs usually have a wider scope of practice than those in LTC and ALFs; in some states they can do accu-checks, insert catheters, and perform simple wound care.

Good luck to you!