difficult co-workers

Specialties Geriatric

Published

Does anyone else have a problem with .subordinates who do not follow instructions and/or give misleading information.I am not confrontational by nature and desire a peaceful harmonious workplaceThere is 1 cna who has suddenly donned the mantel of rn and is disinclined to listen to instructins and is becoming quite vocal about it.Others also decide what orders they will follow.I am not the only one to have this difficulty.What do others do if they have found themselves in this position.Rns who have worked at this facility longer than I have say that they have the same problem.We have new management so am hoping the culture of the place may change.Any suggestions would be much appreciated.Thanks.

Specializes in Cardiothoracic Transplant Telemetry.

If I hear "call lights are everyone's responsibility" one more time, I think I will scream. Of course they are everyone's job, but if you are the aid, and you are sitting at the desk reading a magazine, while I chart and do chart checks, then you are the one who should get up and get the light. It doesn't matter if you got the last two or ten lights, at 0200 call lights are pretty much your ONLY responsibility, and YOU are the one who should get them. And no, it is not acceptable to pick up the phone at the desk and ask them what they want, they will invariably say they want their nurse, I will go in there and find that they want another blanket. Not that I am above getting a blanket, but I have 100 other things to do other than get the blanket because you were too lazy to walk 20 feet down the hall to find out what they want.

I do want to point out that I have enormous respect for CNA's. I have done the job. When I was a CNA I made sure that everyone had fresh water at the beginning of the shift when I introduced myself, everyone was offered pm care, 2400 I&o's were entered, and I never would have dreamed of seeing a call light, looking at the nurse and saying "that's your patient on the light" Yesterday morning I answered a light that the aid had walked past, to find that the patient was ASKING that his foley be emptied of the 2+ liters that had the bag close to bursting because she hadn't emptied it all night long. I was horrified. The foley bag was on the other side of the bed, I had assessed the character of the urine with assessments earlier in the night, but because I had assumed that she had gotten it No patient should ever have to ask to have a foley emptied.

What is even worse is that if you confront this particular aid that she will actively neglect your patients. She will refuse to answer lights, turn or lift your patients, and forget about changing them if they are incontinent.

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I thank the Good Lord that I am not alone.It seems that this problem is not only where I work but is pandemic.Feel so much better knowing I am not alone and take comfort in this.

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Specializes in Nursing Home ,Dementia Care,Neurology..

Don't suppose anyone out there has a full proof,policy/legal proof way of dealing with these lazy,moaning ,work shy waste of spaces(I know very un-PC!)?

Have tried working one to one explaining every detail(that is really tiring to do),tried writing it down,making lists etc but at the end of the day it comes down to the fact that they just want to do as little as possible for their pay.A lot of them seem to think that working nights is an easy option,WRONG!!,we often work short staffed and are still expected to have the same amount of work done as if we were fully staffed(Superwoman move over!!)Teamwork is essential but if one of them is not a team player then it's mega streeeeeeeeess!

Different countries,same da*n problems!

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I have a reputation at my facility that serves me well. A CNA gets one chance to be insubbordinant. The 2nd incident is a write up that goes in their file. The 3rd time they are sent home.

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Specializes in Nursing Home ,Dementia Care,Neurology..

Writing up is not a problem but sending them home---If I only have two carers on then that would be cutting off my nose to spit my face,it would definately leave us at a dangerous working level.The trouble is that ,to your face ,they usually agree, it's behind your back you have to watch,if you have a busy night,(most of them),you just can't go chasing around checking and double checking.Often you don't know that they haven't done a job until it's reported back to you next shift by which time proving the ommission to a particular carer becomes more difficult.:banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

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I have only had to go to the 3rd step twice in my career. Having a reputation for this means that they respect me for my comittment to my patients.

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I am blessed. I have CNA's for the most part working om my unit that work hard. Also blessed with a DON who will not tolerate anyone not doing there job. Not saying we have had a CNA problem, but after a few suspensions, they leave or step up to the job.

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I have a reputation at my facility that serves me well. A CNA gets one chance to be insubbordinant. The 2nd incident is a write up that goes in their file. The 3rd time they are sent home.

Do you work in a unionized hospital? At my workplace, the aid's and everyone else have a union that is there to "protect" them. We can't just send them home. We have to report a behavior and then it is "investigated" (read- nothing is done)

I only wish I could send them home when they are being insubordinate. I would do it in a heartbeat.

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I thank the Good Lord that I am not alone.It seems that this problem is not only where I work but is pandemic.Feel so much better knowing I am not alone and take comfort in this.

Yes, it is so nice to hear that others have the same problems with lazy and insubordinate CNA's. Glad I am not alone.

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Specializes in acute care.

I makes me angry that there are CNAs who get to keep their jobs, even though they don't do their jobs...and there are people like me who are willing to do the job, but can't get a CNA job

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Specializes in LTC / SNF / Geriatrics.
I am blessed. I have CNA's for the most part working om my unit that work hard. Also blessed with a DON who will not tolerate anyone not doing there job. Not saying we have had a CNA problem, but after a few suspensions, they leave or step up to the job.

:yeahthat:

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Specializes in Knuckle Dragging Nurse aka MTA.

I had a couple CNA's that made my life in LTC hell. Two were RN students that would not listen and argue with everything you asked them to do. Others would hang out in the break room for hours while their call lights lit up the halls. Others would not do showers or ADL's but chart that they did them. Management didn't want to approach them becuse they didn't want them to up and quit the facility. God forbide if we lost such quality employees.

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