My 16 year old high school daughter is thinking about going into nursing so she signed up for the CNA course offered at the local technical college which she also gets class credit for. At the time we signed her up, I really didn't know what a CNA did, but the more I research, the more I am worried about her taking this course.
It's the clinicals that I am worried about. She will be working in a nursing home, helping the regular nurses there care for the elderly, right? The part I am worried about with that is the "assist in dressing and bathing". In clinicals, can the nurses have her bathe a naked man including washing his genital area? Or have her change a Depends undergarment and have to clean the genial area of an old man?
For her to have to do that at 18, I wouldn't have as much problem with it. At 18 your considered an adult. But I don't want her doing that sort of thing at 16.
Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.
i would have to say something in this about that age. In Florida you have to be 18 to do anything in nursing field. I am surprised that they allowed her to be able to take this class. Being the nature of what we do.
Many states allow minors to become CNAs. For example, I live in Texas, which mandates that an individual be at least 16 years old and have attained at least a 9th grade education before becoming a CNA.
Training will teach your daughter now to deal with uncomfortable and unacceptable situations. I think it would do any kid good to learn the respect and learn how to develop a relationship with someone different then them. Let the girl do it, you stopping her is not going to teach her anything. But letting her get the experience will change her life for the better!
No way, no how, forget it. In 3 months as a CNA, I was punched at, hit, grabbed, kicked, spit on and verbally abused by many residents.
This is your experience but not a typical one. If this was your experience than perhaps you should have been working in pairs with another CNA. This is a manager's decision but if the abused CNAs don't bring these problems to the table, managers may not be aware.
I was a CNA for over 2 years and gained valuable experience caring for young, adult and old patients. There is nothing sexual and please remember that while your daughter is in clinicals she will not be alone with patients.
Also, as a CNA she can work with kids, adults, infants...CNAs don't work only in Long-term facilities.
How do any of you feel about a 16-year-old male cna
trainee cleaning the genitals of an alert elderly women?
Perhaps being mentored by an 18 or 19 year old more
experienced cna? How do you think some families of the
residents might react to this? I must assume you would
find this just as acceptable as having a 16-year-old
female work intimately with an alert older man who might
not appreciate it. It's interesting that this discussion
seems to come completely from the perspective of the
young cna, and seems to be completely concerned with
the feelings of the cna. How about looking at the feelings
and perspective of the male patient. Just something to
think about.
I don't think the gender makes any difference. If the person is mature enough to do the work in a professional manner, it's OK with me. Society needs to get over some of its hang-ups. It is perfectly OK for a man to be an RN, LPN, or CNA.
Specializes in burn ICU, SICU, ER, Trauma Rapid Response.
It's the clinicals that I am worried about. She will be working in a nursing home, helping the regular nurses there care for the elderly, right? The part I am worried about with that is the "assist in dressing and bathing". In clinicals, can the nurses have her bathe a naked man including washing his genital area? Or have her change a Depends undergarment and have to clean the genial area of an old man?
For her to have to do that at 18, I wouldn't have as much problem with it. At 18 your considered an adult. But I don't want her doing that sort of thing at 16.
*** Why on earth would you have any concerns about your daughter taking care of people? What is it that bothers you? I can't for the life of me fathom what it is you are worried about.
When you say that gender doesn't make any difference -- for whom?
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I wrote a quick answer that you are interpreting in a way that I did not intend. Yes, gender differences can matter -- but HOW they are handled should be similar whether the gender difference is male-female or female-male.
We should always be sensitive to the cultural needs of out patients -- REGARDLESS of the particular gender combinations involved. But we should not prohibit males from becoming CNA's, nurses, or physicians because SOME patients may be uncomfortable with it ... just as we do not prohibit women from becoming CNAS's, nurses, or physicians because SOME people are uncomfortable with a female provider.
When it comes to individual combinations of patients and care-givers (regardless of the role), we should be mindful of cultural preferences. But when we talk about national policy about roles and job opportunities in general, we should be gender-neutral. "Equal opportunity" is a basic tenent of American culture and we need to comply with that in our policies. We can do that and still be sensitive to the needs of individual patients. We do that all the time.
When I took my CNA course there were highschool students in our class. They did the same work that we all did in clinicals. I had one patient that covered himself up during the shower. The other male patients that I had were fine with the showering and changing. You should talk with your daughter and see if she is up to this. There will be lots of things that she will encounter. Showering and changing are one aspect of the job. It will really be good for her to see a little into the medical field now. It might help her decide if this is the right profession for her. I wish her good luck.
TheCommuter, BSN, RN
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