not enjoying job as a CNA

[Purple Princess]

I've been a CNA at a local nursing home for nearly 2 months now. I am starting to think this might not be for me though. Some days go ok and most of the workers are supportive of us new aides. We help each other out. Mistakes do get made and that;s part of learning. But last night did not go well at all. I had west wing with residents I'd never taken care of before and with an aide whom I never worked with before. Maybe I perceived things the wrong way but he made me feel like I wasn't as smart and inadequate in my skills. My residents were all fairly annoying. For starters I decided to take the temps and help pass the ice. In fact I was in the process of taking one person's vitals, he tells me to take my break he'd do the ice and temps. He also did first check all by himself for his and my residents or so he said! Then during dinner I got the trays for the dining room and west wing and proceded to pass them out. The rest I aasumed were in their rooms. So I took the cart out to pass them. He asked me where I was going that more people in the dining room needed a tray. I had no way of knowing some people were sitting at the table but had already eaten. I also don't have names and faces down just yet. I am a float. During pm care he takes his lunch fine then I go to take mine taking only 10 minutes I swear. I come back he tells me authoritatively that he told me previously to put two women to bed. I told him I hadn't heard him and had just come back from my 10 minute lunch. He also passes all the hs snacks by the way. And he doesn't come to me for help he gets his girly from east wing to come over. I had him help me lift two people cause they were heavy and he asked me about my transfer technique as if it was wrong. Him and his girly get done at 930 and are doing some of their charting. I get done at 10 as do the other aides. I start some charting he interupts me again to tell me to take a break and in that 15 minutes finishes his charting, passes snacks, and does the I's and O's. I come back to finish my charting and then get the south book cause I had one person on that wing. He opens the book and flips it to her page as if I couldn't find it myself. He then watches me as I fill it out and also put my bm's in the bowel book. I felt intimidated. A reaccuring question is where did I work before. I tell them I have no official work experience. They want to know how I got certified like I took the easy way. It wasn't easy. I was in an RN program and completed the first semester which inc aide training along with med adm Iv's, wound care and much more. 5 months of intense training. My mom thinks he might be jealous. I don't know what to think. The residents last night were annoying too. Sometimes I think I really need a break. I've been in college for over 3 years now and am getting really bored. I want to take phlebotomy training in the fall and work as one during lpn school.

[Soonstudent]

Some people just get off on the power trip. Don't let them get you down. You sound like you've got a good plan. good luck.

[Destinystar]

Maybe you could get some tips from the Thread about bullying in the work place. That is what this sounds like to me

[Farkinott, RN]

I can only go on what you have posted so I am sure the whole story, would give posters like me a better picture of what is going on. Your post contains elements of rancour which are not appropriate if you really want an opinion of what's going on. It also undermines any hope of viewing your complaint in a professional manner. The bloke who (you say) is giving you a hard time may be doing just that, but also he may be trying to look after the clients, as he perceives you may not have the skills to complete their care. You complain that he is always done before you. Is this because he is more organsied and you are jealous?

Just because you have the qualification doesn't mean you know it all.

If you are new in a workplace it is vital that you get the existing staff on side. Ask "How are things usually done here?" This is very important in a long term care facility. I have worked with many nursing students who were studying to be an RN whils i was and enrolled nurse (LPN). I used to feel a bit jealous inside that they were on a better career path than me. These people never gave me "an attitude". I taught them what I know so that they could be better nurses.I did not give them a hard time for being who they were when was in the position of power.

I suggest you stand back and reflect on the circumstances you have described . With a different viewpoint do the situation/issues arrive at the same outcome?

It is with the so called wisdom of age that enables me to stand back and have a look at things ina different way. Don't take stuff lso seriously! Maybe you need to go back and start afresh!

Good Luck!

[canoehead, BSN, RN]

I agree with Farkinott to some extent. If he is not familiar with your work he will try to be more available to you, and generally hang around you more to get a sense of how you do things. That's a sign of an RN that cares what happens to his patients, not a slur towards you. He may be taking on some of your duties because he has the time, and knows you are in a new situation. Why not just ask him? Say "I noticed you did____, and I thought that was one of my jobs...could you let me know if I don't pick up on something that needs to be done?" or even, "I noticed you are watching me pretty closely, is there something you're worried about?"

I'll bet that if you are open with your concerns, but not accusing, the two of you will grow into a great team. He may even become one of your favorite partners, as it seems he is willing to help you out when things are busy.

[Purple Princess]

I realize I don't know it all and won't even 5 years from now. Usually when 2 aides take a wing they do check together. They split the duties like getting ice, temps, snacks, and help each other on an as needed basis. Previously I felt that I was doing well for a beginner. I asked him for help only 2 times during pm care to lift a resident. Both times he acted like I should have been able to do it myself. And I didn't know which residents liked to go to bed first or anything. Sure we read the ADL books, that's required but sometimes we have to talk to an aide that's taken care of these residents before. I have had my own list of residents to care for for over a month. Occasionally I get behind and need help but usually do well and in return do a favor for the aide that helped me. I had my training at two hospitals so I do understand basic care. Everything we do for them we do for ourselves everyday. He is a regular on the floor and typically is on that wing. I'm familiar with the routine. I still ask questions but know what I'm suppose to be doing. I know a person that has been at it for awhile will have a routine better that a new person. But most times I manage to split the tasks with the other aide like vitals and ice. I just felt like I was being told what to do and how to do it. There was little communication and collaboration of duties. But like any job some people just don't get along. They simply tolerate each other and cooperate to get the work done.

I can only go on what you have posted so I am sure the whole story, would give posters like me a better picture of what is going on. Your post contains elements of rancour which are not appropriate if you really want an opinion of what's going on. It also undermines any hope of viewing your complaint in a professional manner. The bloke who (you say) is giving you a hard time may be doing just that, but also he may be trying to look after the clients, as he perceives you may not have the skills to complete their care. You complain that he is always done before you. Is this because he is more organsied and you are jealous?

Just because you have the qualification doesn't mean you know it all.

If you are new in a workplace it is vital that you get the existing staff on side. Ask "How are things usually done here?" This is very important in a long term care facility. I have worked with many nursing students who were studying to be an RN whils i was and enrolled nurse (LPN). I used to feel a bit jealous inside that they were on a better career path than me. These people never gave me "an attitude". I taught them what I know so that they could be better nurses.I did not give them a hard time for being who they were when was in the position of power.

I suggest you stand back and reflect on the circumstances you have described . With a different viewpoint do the situation/issues arrive at the same outcome?

It is with the so called wisdom of age that enables me to stand back and have a look at things ina different way. Don't take stuff lso seriously! Maybe you need to go back and start afresh!

Good Luck!

[Julie b]

I also work in a long term facility, and It's rough not working with someone you know. I agree with the fact that you really need to talk to this person. If you don't then things wont get any better and the residents in the long run are the ones that will suffer. Ive been at my job almost 5 years and I love it! I love my residents and I get along with most of my co-workers yes, there are a few that I feel shouldnt be there but, while youre there you need to make the most of it. Maybe ask to work with someone else? Im hopeing to get into the LPN Program next month. Good luck to you and I hope everything works out for you.:)

[shel_wny]

I'm been working as a new CNA for about a month now. It's hard work but time flies and I love it. One of the biggest challenges I've had to face is working side by side with all different sorts of people. When you think about it, it takes a special kind of person to do the work a CNA has to do. That person has to have the ability to withstand pungent yucky smells like c-diff and gangrene, horrible sights and sounds like gagging, vomiting, feet rotting off, and a stage 4 decubitis, and lots more crazy things. Our staff is a mixture of young, old, mothers, fathers, teens, all of different races and cultures, and in different stages of life. The unique blend makes for some misunderstandings and communication problems. I think that's what is almost always at the heart of any conflict.

A girl at work was training me and I shadowed her around for about a week and a half. After I passed the certification test and got to work alone we found ourselves on the same team. At this point she still treated me like an orientee and would order me to do things - "Get the vander, please", "Tuck the sheet under her, please" and etc. After about a week of biting my tongue I finally talked with her about it. I told her that I didn't really like being asked to do things all the time that I already had trained to do. I asked her to have patience with me and allow me to do things on my own instead of asking me to do every little thing and tacking on "please" to the end of it. She at first was very defensive and stand-offish and didn't speak to me for about 30 minutes. I broke the ice and asked her how her weekend was and then everything was fine. She hasn't asked me to do something silly since! We make a wonderful team and look after each other, helping our residents get the best care possible. She has picked up some of my more textbook techniques and I've picked up some of her short cuts and we've learned a lot from each other. Moral of the story is - confront him about it. Ask him why he's always looking over your shoulder. Make sure your tone is more curious and less defensive. Say it with a grin! Give him the benefit of the doubt and tell him that you admire his interest in care for the resident.

Good luck and hang in there! :)

Shel

[tabh]

The best way around the situation is just to confront him. I am a new CNA and worked as an aide in my facility for 3 months before they sent me for my course. A lot of times you have to earn their respect when you're new. I had 3 months to do this before even becoming certified. It can be tough and the people on my floor were not even as difficult as this person sounds. You just have to stand up for yourself. It's the only way.

We have one trouble maker on the floor now who is new (to our floor - not the facility). She came on our floor a few weeks ago and has been trying to run the show ever since. She bosses everyone around and thinks she is our NM or something. We have spoken politely to her, exchanged "words" with her, and even tried our hardest to ignore her.

Today she pulled up someone from DON for a floor meeting. I was not there, thankfully, because I was in class orienting for the afternoon. Basically she wants everything done her way and wants the clusters to switch their routine to accomodate her preferences. The DON went for it. :uhoh21: Sometimes you just can't win no matter how hard you try.

But yeah... talk to this person and confront them in a nice way. He will lighten up once you can come to understanding. But do watch out because you will run into some evil coworkers sooner or later!