Getting put as an nurses' aid on shifts.

Nurses Relations

Published

I'm working at a diabetes/kidney acute medicine ward and have since I started in October noticed there's some nursing colleagues disgruntled due to the pressure nurses are under. A lot of overtime hours and since we have flex hours (not sure if it's called that in English speaking countries) we can put in to get a day off with those hours, we can be called to work though if a nurse is sick. The thing is that we are getting called in when nurses' aids call in sick too, getting put as aids to our colleagues for that shift. Sometimes we can see our names on the board days in advance too. A colleague who has been working against this got yelled at by our boss one day. It doesn't feel fair. Aids are obviously not getting called to work if a nurse is sick (aids think it's just fine that the situation is like this however). I had my first shift being an aid a week ago and it felt really awkward being put in a situation where my colleague was, even for the day, my boss. Has any of you experienced this? I'm all for working together for a common goal but I did not spend many years in school/university and have big loans to work as an aid but rather to use my skills to do nursing work.

Anna

I wouldn't want to do it long term, or even more than a few days in a row, but if I were paid my RN salary to do ANYTHING with less responsibility and a fraction of the charting, I could step in as an aide. And being bossed by my fellow nurses? Not likely*, the authority wouldn't change, I would just be filling in where needed.

*We don't treat our aides as subordinates and other than asking about and observing medical restrictions they take the initiative anyway.

ETA Our nurses aren't the bosses of our aides. We supervise patient care but the DON and Administrator are the bosses.

I would much rather work as a CNA, getting my licensed nurse pay, than to not be working at all. That said, there is probably a limit to how often I would care to do this.

Specializes in Quality, Cardiac Stepdown, MICU.

We have occasionally (VERY rare occasions) had an RN work as a CNA if we are short techs and over a nurse. We on the floor would rather have the extra set of hands then send that nurse home. Depending on the nurse (depending on whether they've been a tech before, and how long ago) they can rock the job or struggle at it.

The few times I've done it, I take the regular team a tech would (one half or one-third of the floor), no RN duties, though I will shut off IV pumps, refill bags of saline, or anything else I'd do for a fellow nurse's pt that I didn't know a whole lot about but was within my scope of practice.

Obviously, no company wants to pay a nurse's pay for a CNA, so they try not to make a habit of this. One time, when I was a newer nurse, I had picked up an overtime shift, and they were short sitters for a suicidal patient, and while they were waiting for a replacement I sat there for about 2 hours. The highest paid sitter they had in a long time! :roflmao:

Specializes in Ortho, CMSRN.

I am a new nurse, My year anniversary at my job will be at the end of Feb. I haven't had to work as an aid on my floor yet, though I have seen nurses do so. Was an aid while in nursing school and don't think I'd mind... at least you'll most likely get out on time instead of stuck an hour late charting because of a rapid response or code and get shorted an hour of sleep when you're due to come back that night -_-. I did notice that they had our floors only LVN working as tech twice when I was working, a month a part, but I've NEVER had to work as a tech, and I've got my BSN. If I were him, I'd be annoyed, because frankly... he's a more experienced/knowledgeable/skilled nurse than me and has years on most of the nurses on the floor. I'd rather we all get to take a turn at it than sticking one person at it more than others. I don't think I'd mind working as a CNA for a night, but that doesn't mean that the other nurses having to do it feel ok with it.

Specializes in MICU - CCRN, IR, Vascular Surgery.

When my MICU is very short staffed, we will sometimes get nurses from the float pool who work med surg or labor and delivery and are unable to take an ICU patient assignment, but we are so desperate for help that they get assigned to us as "helping hands". Mostly they help with just turns and baths because we're control freaks who are used to having no help whatsoever and because of that, when we have help available we literally forget to ask. If I ever got assigned to this role for whatever reason, sure, it would be tiring, but it would be nice to say "oh, let me see if the nurse is free to talk to you on the phone" and be done with it!

Specializes in Inpatient Oncology/Public Health.

We are sometimes staffed as aides but it hasn't happened in a long time due to our recent short staffing. I usually do my aide work and also help all the other RNs with their stuff(in an RN capacity.) The nice part is little documentation and I get out on time with the very short report. I'm kinda slow with vitals and it's usually super busy working in 2 roles. I always appreciate the PCAs even more at the end of those shifts!

I have my usual monthly plus extra for inconvenient hours so the same as if I was a nurse for the day. Our boss when I asked why I was put as an aide said that "Ohhh but it's not like that, it's more like 2 nurses", but everybody knows it doesn't work like that. More like fancy words. We have such a tight spot all hands on deck are needed. But I will bring it up with my boss that they should actually draft some real routines and make them known to stop the odd situations occurring right now.

What we used to do was split the RN assignments if we got an RN instead of a CNA to fill a CNA call out. For instance, if we staffed 5 RNs and 2 CNAs for 25 patients, and got an extra RN for a CNA call out, we'd divide the patients by 6 RNs and the remaining CNA would be assigned the pts with the most mobility and personal care needs. The RNs would do most of their own "CNA" type cares.

We had one RN that luuuuurved to play CNA lol, I think because it was fun to her to zing out of the patients rooms and tell another RN to get the patient some pain meds :D

If the RN didn't mind being a "CNA" for a shift, it worked out great for everyone. But no one was forced. My lower and mid back ache after all these years made me a big fan of NOT being one of the CNA's, the pain makes me a complete wimp. I be crankin' those beds up to my chin so I don't have to bend over.

It's sad to hear a nursing unit or facility being so UNdemocratic. That atmosphere creates poor morale and adults just don't respond well to being treated like naughty children trying to get out of work. Most if not all nurses want the patient's needs cared for, and wouldn't protest doing what needs doing, but to have it DEMANDED of you, with no choice or ability to negotiate? That causes too much low morale IMO.

+ Add a Comment