FED UP CNAS!!!!

NurseShawntae · Oct 6, 2009

I think the major issue here is walking in another humans shoes...I started out as a secretary, progressed to a CNA, then a unit secretary, LPN, then charge nurse, then supervising, finally returned to graduate with my BSN. I have tried to experience and love every aspect. There are difficulties with each one, and i have felt no matter what job i did, no one appreciated what i had did, and everyone not appreciating each other. As a CNA i rarely had a nurse say thanks or you did a great job, it was always you didnt do this or i need this. As a secretary it was managment and doctors barking orders. As a LPN i even less got a thank you unless it was a careplan meeting from a grateful family (usual though is the complaints) and add on the doctors, pharmacy, lab, managment, housekeepers, maintenance, etc all explaining all that we are doing wrong.

Like mentioned above as a CNA there are things that need to be done like vitals, accuchecks, bathing, incontinence care, turning, etc. This does not mean that the nurses should not assist when able, but please please please understand that some of us (NOT ALL, there are bad nurses as well as bad CNA's) hate asking you to do things but have 100 things running around in our brain and really need those vitals ASAP.....And if no one has told you lately you are appreciated for ALL YOU DO....we could not do our jobs without you and your patients could not go on without you!!!!!

hdagnan · Oct 7, 2009

Do all of you work at my facility? Seriously! I switched to 3rd shift and changed my classes to early morning just so I wouldn't have to deal with the sorry admin and the crazy day shift CNAs. I would hear a small group of CNAs talking about how many days they needed to call off just so they could make sure their section 8 didn't go over 300 a month or because they hated working 4 days in a row. Seriously!?!? They make more than I do and I have 2 kids and I'm in school. Then they talk about who got how drunk and did what Friday night, walk around all day doing nothing, smoke 20 times a shift, and leave their incontinent residents soaked for when I come in. UGH! I LOVE my job, I love my residents, but half the staff needs to be thrown out on their a**. A few of the nurses should retire already because their heart isn't in it, nor their head. Instead they just put everything off on you. Most nights we work short, A 50 bed floor split between 2 people. Plus vital signs on all Medicare, get ups (the difficult residents that day shift doesnt like getting up), and we have ALOT of geri-psych residents to monitor.

It's nice to vent, and to see that there are so many others out there in my boat. When I graduate, I will DEFINITELY remember my experiences and have a little more appreciation for my CNAs.

fuzzywuzzy, CNA · Oct 7, 2009

Now we are no longer allowed to sit down! We have a lot of paperwork to do at the end of our shift, and it's all in big books. And we either have to hold the book up against the wall so the pages keep flopping over and your pen's ink stops flowing, or lean up against the wall and balance everything on your leg. It's such a spiteful, passive-aggressive rule. The other day after we got everyone up we had a few minutes before supper trays came out. So I was sitting in someone's wheelchair doing my check-off charting. And the charge nurse was walking the halls looking for something to yell at people about and I got the third degree for sitting down to chart. I get asked did I do this or that. Yes, I did it all. I did everything and THAT'S WHY I AM CHARTING RIGHT NOW. So then she was up my ass to do useless things like wheel people up and down the hallway (to get them all wound up when they're supposed to be eating in 5 minutes?? This is the heavy behavioral dementia hall). Anything to get my on my feet, which hurt halfway through the shift and well into the next morning when I wake up. Because CNAs are lazy scum who need to be chased around all day. I think I was her target for the day because last week I didn't walk one person who REFUSED! Omg. And then she started talking about this resident in a way that demonstrated how clueless she actually is about her.

What makes this even more aggravating is that I was doing my charting early because I hadn't had those residents in a while and didn't want to miss anything new in their care plans. And this is what they tell you that you're supposed to do. I'f I'd missed something then I would have gotten written up for not going through the book!

Then we also got yelled at for getting our people in bed "too fast." They seemt o think we rush just so we can sit around at 10pm and feel bored out of our minds. So they want us to be working right up to 11 o'clock or something and we're basically being punished for being too efficient. Apparently it doesn't occur to them that we're supposed to toilet/change these residents (all of whom are incontinent), and reposition them q2h. So you need to get them in fast. Plus half of them are throwing themselves into bed very early anyway. I have a certain way of doing things to make all of this happen in spite of my workload and now I can't do it that way anymore unless I want to get in trouble. It's so frustrating.

No matter what you do you are treated like you're stupid and lazy and worthless. Nothing you do is ever good enough.

GCTMT · Oct 7, 2009

^ That's crap Fuzzywuzzy. We are still allowed to sit down in our LTC to chart. And in fact I couldn't imagine having to stand to do it. Some of the in-services forms we have to fill out at our LTC are ridiculous though. For example, during dinner NA's are not allowed to watch television. Of course, we don't really have time to anyway but the news is always on during dinner, and I have been known to glance up at the screen when I hear something that catches my attention. Well, last saturday when I worked I glanced up at the screen and one of the nurses saw me, she said, "We do not watch television". That's something you would say to a child so I couldn't help but laugh at her, I think it bothered her because she stormed off.

If I were you fuzzywuzzy, I would sit down while you chart anyway, if they don't like, that's their problem. If you get fired over it I'd bet you'd have a good wrongful termination suit. Our job is hard enough without having to put up with BS like that.

I, and most of the other CNA's work our bums off. I am also tired of being treated like a stupid, lazy child.

When I am a nurse, I will never take NA's for granted. Shame on those nurses that do.

my2cents · Oct 7, 2009

Another thing that's funny is that when I first started as an NA, everyone only cared about bathes, vitals, accuchecks, and pulling linen. But when I started clearing away cluttered rooms, making beds, shaving, combing out matted hair, wiping bedside tables, and changing dressings, all of a sudden its a major PRIORITY now. Yet when I walk past the rooms covered by other NA's the rooms are filthy and patient's look like ragamuffins, laying in soiled briefs and sheets. I've noticed that when I work with some nurses, they have no problem asking me to do things. But when they work with other NA, especially the one's who have bad attitudes, they don't ask them to do anything.!

I agree with you. I did everything i was suppose to do and more. As yrs went by and by i start to notice THE MORE I DO THE MORE THEY EXPECT YOU TO DO. ohh, but dont mind the other cnas that get passed by everything because they arent expecting to do what you do. After 7 yrs working at that facility i finally went out and get another job. I like most of the nurses i work with because they do work with you and help you.

Miwila · Oct 8, 2009

You guys are scaring me......

CoffeemateCNA · Apr 29, 2010

I have so many pet peeves, I don't know where to begin. Working at an LTC can be very stressful. The top complaints I had were:
1. When I used to work 3-11p, it wasn't uncommon for me to walk in at 2:50p and they would be paging me to come clean someone up. I know 7a-3p has it bad, but could I at least clock in first?? It's not like they would actually pay me overtime for clocking in early!
2. Demanding family members. I have said it time and time again. I simply cannot stand pesky family members. They are the ones who put the call light on for everything. They stand in the hallway and look for you until they find you. They act as if you don't have other patients to care for. They think that when their loved one needs you, you are supposed to STOP what you are currently doing and come to their beckoning call. Not the way the real world works when you have 15-20 residents to care for.
3. Being resposible for so much at once. Another person said it so right. Housekeeping should tidy the room and make the beds. Nurses should do their own vitals and dietary should drop off and collect trays to certain people. Why should I have to dress & wash 16 people, give 4 showers, make 16 beds, pass and collect 25+ trays, do changes every 2 hours, collect all 16 patients vitals signs plus answer to the nurses misc. demands and clean everyone's room in only 8 hours?? Something is seriously wrong with this picture. Can you figure it out? And they wonder why nursing homes always get hit with neglect cases! :smackingf
4. Angry, lazy nurses. Don't get me wrong, most nurses are a pleasure to work with and help out as much as they can. But then you have the others I mentioned. These nurses will spend 10 minutes trying to find you to ask you get someone a glass of water. The amount of time & energy it took for them to hunt you down they could have done the task themselves. The ones the always pages you to go clean someone or give someone tissues when they know you are already swamped. The nurse who looks for reasons to get you in trouble. You know, The nurse who writes you up for things totally beyond your control. In all acuality, they probably should have been written up for neglecting to help. I could go on. These are little things they could help you with but many refuse because they are an LPN, RN ect. I guess their degrees give them too much pride.
5. Lazy CNA's. They are always to first to finish. They get away with murder (not washing residents, not using the hoyer, leaving nasty linens on the beds, arriving to work very late). They tell the Nurse what to do. They are never around when they are needed. They are totally MIA-before and after their lunch break. They get the easiest assignments ALWAYS. It seems like they are either always at work or they are always absent. There is no happy medium with these types.
6. The pay. Unless you get lucky, the pay is usually very lousy for the amount of work you have to do. I remember some days I had barely enough money to get to work....you truly have to have a heart to work in this field. If your thinking you'll get rich, you are sadly mistaken!! In my case, bills had to get paid, having a heart wasn't enough. So I had to change my career a little bit.
7. Working short. Number 3 says everything.

Just have to say I printed this out and posted it on my refrigerator last year.

It's that good.

eveningsky339, LPN · Apr 30, 2010

I'm fed up with nursing homes in general.

Jen{NAR} · Apr 30, 2010

I really, really, really love my job as a nursing assistant in an LTC; however, this is what ticks me off:

1) Nurses telling me to do something "right now". As though I am not doing something "right now". I finally said, "does it look like I am busy?" and continued to tend to my residents.

2) Getting notes about people not doing showers, only to look in the NAR book and see that the only showers not filled out are day shifts ((I know you guys are busy, so are we, but if PMs can get their paperwork filled out so should you)).

3) Getting yelled at for too many falls in a month. Well, if we weren't working "challenged" so many days...I am pretty sure those fall numbers would go down.

4) smoke breaks--need I say more?

5) Doing someone else's resident when they are busy and you know that the lady has a set time to go to bed and if you are late she will yell; but, when you ask the other NAR to do one of your people she says "no". Leaving your census of residents at 12 and she only did 9....I mean I know I am lucky that's all I have to do, but normally it's 8-10 residents to one NAR.

Thanks, that felt good....

Poi Dog · Apr 30, 2010

So sick of an aide coming to tell that so and so needs to be toileted WHILE I am in the midst of a shower. Uh, hello are you an idiot? Seriously! Do I leave my resident alone so I can toilet someone while your butt walked half a mile to tell me that?

:nuke:

I am all for administering IQ tests BEFORE hire.

fuzzywuzzy, CNA · Jun 23, 2010

Time to post in this thread again!

1. Tired of other departments not doing their jobs! Dietary sending the wrong trays to the wrong units, then the CNAs have to take extra time making phone calls and hunting down missing trays... this is LTC, how hard is it to establish a routine? Or they ignore your calls... you say "Hey Mrs. Smith never got a tray" they tell you it's on its way and 20 minutes later it has yet to show up and we get attitude when we have to call again. Then it's another 10 minutes. Please just make the tray and send it up BEFORE you go get high in the parking lot! Is that too much to ask? And housekeeping- wetting part of the floor and spraying air freshener are not "cleaning." Is that how you clean your house? Actually, it probably is.

2. Nurses that harp on you and question every little thing you do. The other day one of them told my partner and I that we are disorganized because we don't do our last rounds in any particular order, and it would go a lot faster if we went room to room. Well thanks a lot for your advice! In fact, you're right- when you're not here that's the way we do it and things get done a lot faster. But when you're here and you follow us around bugging us and telling us don't do this or that, or do such and such a thing, or get this done first, or wait a minute while I do this, then we CAN'T go in order, and it takes us longer! And when you make us give all your drinks for you, it takes us longer. Or when you actually give a drink yourself, and spill it all over the person's clothes, that slows us down too. Why is it that you tell us "Don't put that person to bed yet because I haven't finished giving their meds!" even though you were just in the room? Oh yeah, it's because you don't go in any particular order either!

3. Lazy CNAs who spend twice the time doing half the work. And make a big deal about it. How can you say you had a hard day when you did one shower and 2 bed baths, and that was it? What do you do with your time? Your job for the day was to help people instead of having a regular assignment and you didn't do a thing for me even though when I'm the extra set of hands I bust my ass helping you. Or when you have a nice, hard worker for a partner you leave her to do her assignment plus half of yours. Just see what happens next time when things are switched around. You'll see what it's like having to do your own work for once.

DreamyEyes · Jun 23, 2010

Time to post in this thread again!
1. Tired of other departments not doing their jobs! Dietary sending the wrong trays to the wrong units, then the CNAs have to take extra time making phone calls and hunting down missing trays... this is LTC, how hard is it to establish a routine? Or they ignore your calls... you say "Hey Mrs. Smith never got a tray" they tell you it's on its way and 20 minutes later it has yet to show up and we get attitude when we have to call again. Then it's another 10 minutes. Please just make the tray and send it up BEFORE you go get high in the parking lot! Is that too much to ask? And housekeeping- wetting part of the floor and spraying air freshener are not "cleaning." Is that how you clean your house? Actually, it probably is.

Oh, man. I feel your pain. Do we work at the same place???