I am a nurse's aid at a LTC facility. I've been here since January. I took 4 weeks of class then was assigned to a hall on the 3-11 shift.
The CNA that trained me on this floor is very bossy. I don't work under her anymore but she tends to boss me around, run the show on the floor.
I've had problems with the gal. She has singled me out to boss me around; I can take criticism when I know it's for my own good and presented in a decent way, but she talks down to me all the time. She's 34. I'm 51.
I'm beginning to wonder about her. She's been a Personal Care Home Manager, a Medical Assistant and now she's working as a CNA at lower wages, I'm sure.
Tonight, when we got assignments, the nurse passed that chore on to Ms. Bossy. She asked if I wanted to do a certain hall that I've never done on my own and have only worked it 2-3 times. I said yeah, I'll never learn it otherwise. Ms. Bossy said so sweetly at that point "If you need any help, just ask"
Well later in the evening before last rounds, I was having trouble with one resident and went to Ms. Bossy. She took over and talked to me in a demeaning, irritable tone of voice. She was explaining things and saying "Now you watch what I'm doing." "Now I want you to remember all of this." It was said like a mother would talk to a misbehaving child. She didn't have to be so bossy or irritable - remember, she offered the assistance when shift began.
She ordered me to get something for the resident and I accidently shut the door too hard and was taking the soiled laundry out of the room, got sidetracked by someone else for a second and forgot the bib for the resident (I'm afraid Ms. Bossy makes me nervous and I screw up.) I go back, Ms. Bossy is at the door and angrily says "Where is the bib?" By then, I had had it and I angrily and louder than ususal replied "OK, I'll get the bibb."
After the resident was finished, I got a lecture from Ms. Bossy about how I will never ever yell at her again and how I had asked her for help and how she had helped me. And I said well quit talking to me like I'm 10 years old and then she said:
"WELL, IF YOU WEREN'T SO STUPID . . . . . (and I don't recall or heard the rest of the sentence.)
Boy, talk about one angry aid here. I don't like her and she doesn't like me and that's fine but don't get personally insulting with me especially in front of the nurse and the other aids which is where we were when she called me stupid.
So soon as I got home I typed up a nice little letter to the 3-11 shift Nursing Supervisor and the In-Service Supervisor explaining the events and requesting that I be switched to another shift. I don't even want to work the same shift as this b!tch.
I also requested an informal appraisal and stated that if, in fact, I wasn't cutting it (nice word for if I really was stupid), then it made no sense for me to continue to work at that Home and in the Nurse's Aid profession.
I just want away from this woman.
If we had just had a disagreement about how we talk to each other that would've been the end of it; but she personally attacked me and that's going to far.
Tomorrow I plan to give the letters to the Supervisors.
Suggestions please - am I doing the right thing? Is there somewhere here where I was wrong? When the door slammed, I went back and apologized for closing the door too hard.
I've tried my best to do my job; I don't talk about other workers; I want to learn. This particular gal seems to lead all the aids around by the nose. No one on the shift came to me - they all hovered with Ms. Bossy. I felt very alone.
