HELP! I DON"T WANT TO GO THROUGH CNA first...

Nurses General Nursing

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This is really not to put any profession down but I've dreamed of being a nurse for soooo long, now only to discover that before entering my LVN program, I have to get the CNA title first! I am horrified of having to do some of the tasks described! This is not whaat I dreamed of all these years, I was thinking more along the lines of changing newborn diapers, not old folk diapers! CAN ANYONE BRING ANY CONSOLATION?

I am a senior nursing student with a 4.0 GPA blah, blah, blah. I took a job about a month ago on a critical care floor. Lots of kidney, liver, heart failure etc. Lots of immobile, incontinent patients. Lots of bed baths, and lots of poop. Even with my 4.0 GPA , I learned more in 3 days on the job than I learned my entire junior year of school. Working as a CNA is the best thing I have ever done. Every nurse I have talked too says the best nurses are the ones that have been CNAs first. My CNA experience is far more valuable than any grades or honors I may attain. If you don't ever want to do CNA work, that means you will be one of those RNs that sees a patient lying in their waste, and walk away because it isn't your job. Nurses like that are not teamplayers. By the way, since I am working this semester, I probably won't pull all A's, but I will be a heck of a lot better nurse because of my CNA experience. Title means nothing, especially if you think you are above doing certain tasks.

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wow I am not sure how to start this post. I am now a supervisor in my current job. Before that 14yrs before I started in food service, then Direct care (similar to CNA)then LPN now supervisor. Every step I have taken lead me to where I am today. When I work my part time job as an agency nurse I have to rely on CNA's greatly to help me. It is sad that anyone wishing to go into the medical/nursing field would want to bypass being a CNA its called work. I think it helps to start at the bottom. You can only go up. My father just retired as a RN for over 30yrs. Up to his last day working he continued to help with ADL's . Nursing is treating the human need as well as the medical need. I agree with most if you dont want to become a CNA that is like learning to walk before you crawl. It also sounds like cna work is beneath you? I could be wrong. Just my humble opinion.

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I haven't read all the responses so maybe someone else already called it, but my first thought was that the OP is a troll...

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In the beginning I thought along the same lines you did in that I never got my CNA certification before starting LPN school. I thought, I will get my RN and never have to clean up poop......Boy was I wrong, but like alot of others have said, it is not as bad as you are envisioning it to be. When I started LPN school we did our stint in LTC and I fell in love with the people I got to see twice a week. After getting my LPN and while going to school for my RN I worked part time in a nursing home. The elderly I got the privilage to take care of there helped me become a better nurse. You get passed the smell you think will "kill" you and the mess and see the wonderful person with the great stories that you cant wait to talk to again. Or use it as an opportunity to visualize your patients skin while you talk about something else and get your job done. Making them feel so much more comfortable in a very uncomfortable situation. The people you will get a privilage to take care of and "change" will touch your life forever. Dont give up on being a nurse but realize that that "duty" is such a small part of being any NURSE that it will end up feeling the same as making a bed. Just another task you need to do.

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I had 2 masters degrees when I decided to make the switch to nursing. I have now been a CNA in a skilled nursing home for a couple of years while going through nursing school. I'm the first one in that room when a patient's been incontinent. My nose isn't stuck up so high in the air that I can't see how uncomfortable (not to mention the skin breakdown issues) the patient is after having a BM all over themselves.

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I remember when I was still a student on ICU...we had a patient we had just cleaned up, changed the whole bed, etc. He started pooping again, before we rolled him back over. I didn't want to change the bed again, so I just caught the poo right in my (gloved) hands. Hehe.

(And, no, I don't really like poo either. But...it happens.) ;)

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This is really not to put any profession down but I've dreamed of being a nurse for soooo long, now only to discover that before entering my LVN program, I have to get the CNA title first! I am horrified of having to do some of the tasks described! This is not whaat I dreamed of all these years, I was thinking more along the lines of changing newborn diapers, not old folk diapers! CAN ANYONE BRING ANY CONSOLATION?

It has been said here already, and others will and do disagree---but get out NOW.

I am a man and it was VERY hard for me to get over some of the things you are worried about but had to and did. CNA, LPN, now RN. I think ALL nurses should be a CNA first.

Just my opinion.

Tom

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I started out as a Phlebotomist, and I promise you I will be far and away more knowledgeable when nursing school starts then those who have ZERO experience working in a hospital setting. Never think CNA,Lab,etc is below you as its a great foundation.

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Specializes in Med-Surg, Trauma, Ortho, Neuro, Cardiac.

Please note that I removed a post that was intended to be private, because it spurred some heated response and personal attacks.

Remember when someone gives an opinion, they are entitled without being told "that's so offensive, I don't want you as my nurse", etc. etc.

Note that we've been there and done that already, and no need to start anew with a new poster.

Just disagree politely, or hold your tongue and ignore the thread no matter how offended you are. Take a deep breath and pause before you post. Thanks so much for understanding and keeping it friendly

Thanks so much. Carry on.

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When I did my CNA training here in San Diego, I loved it. At first I was a little squeamish about changing residents diapers and giving them showers (during my clinicals). However I got over that real quick, I also felt happy that I was helping them. I mean, what if it was my grandparent in there? What about when I get old and they are uncomfortable about helping me? They're just as human as I am. My CNA teacher (who worked for 30 years as an RN) said, "If you feel uncomfortable about washing the private parts of a man or a woman, then you might not want to be a CNA or a RN. There will be many things that you might not feel comfortable with, but you still need to learn them." She was the best teacher, and she was so funny too.

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It's not just old folks who end up incontinient. Code browns happen amongst all age groups in the hospital. You can't even rely on going straight to a Peds or NICU setting to escape adult poop, what if you get floated?

What about bed pans? You could be dealing with a teenager who is bed ridden and needs the bed pan. What will you do leave the person squirming while you run around to find a CNA?

You may not have to do the diaper or bedpan thing a lot as an RN but if you think that you will always be able to wait on the CNA to take care of this unpleasant task you are mistaken.

If you are going to be a nurse expect to confront some non-baby (I have a 6month and baby poop stinks too) poop at some point in your career.

It's really not as bad as you are making it out to be in your mind. I thought I could never do it but I did and have lived to tell the tale many times. Some poops were smellier than others but you get over it eventually.

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Specializes in urology, pediatrics, med-surg.

I know this subject has been well covered, but as it's still ongoing, I thought I'd add my 2 cents.

I've been reading Allnurses for a long time now and my journey is finally moving forward. I became a CNA about 6 months ago to give me a foundation in the nursing field while I finished up my prereqs and hopefully start nursing school in the fall. I didn't have to, but I had never worked in the medical field before and didn't really know what to expect. I don't doubt that one can be a great nurse without being a CNA, but I wouldn't have passed up the step for anything. I was scared of it at first, but in the past 6 months, I've been peed on, pooped on, vomited on, scratched, bitten, slapped, spit at, cussed, kissed, hugged, praised, thanked and more. I didn't think I could handle some of the body fluids, but rarely give it a second thought now. I still have a bit of trouble with trach "stuff", but am getting over that too. Had my first experience with C-diff this week. Whee. I have even discovered that I don't freak out when I walk into a room to find that a resident has passed away. So no, it's not a glamorous job, and I know I want to move on up the ladder to become a nurse rather than being a career CNA, but I've learned some very valuable skills and even more, I've learned something very important about myself. I can do this, and I will be a good nurse who can take the "yucky stuff" in stride. And I like to think that I will never see myself as above any task required of me as a nurse. Sometimes doing something you think you'll hate, or something you're scared of, you learn something that makes you a better person in the long run. Doesn't mean you have to keep doing it for life, but it can still be worthwhile.

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