helppppp please lol

[katiemisskatie]

Once again i have more questions!! Thank god for this website and all of you nice people out there!!!

Okay, as a cna working in LTC.. this is my first job ever and i'm going to be starting orientation really soon. It's gonna be 6 weeks long and i'm hoping i start to get a feel of how things go there but i'm just nervous about when i'm off on my own.

I know that i'm going to have 5-8 residents on evenings.. but on nights i'll be the only cna with 20 residents and an LPN. so I'm kind of freaking out. I just want to know how some of you guys do things schedule wise.

I'm the type of person to feel like theres always something that needs to be done. But how do i know what to do and when to do it? Like, on evenings what is the first thing i should do? I know obviously to answer my call bells and help the residents with whatever they need, but if there is no call bells going off should i be doing other things like repositioning? And how will i know when to do that?

I think i might be over thinking this but i just don't want to get there and have someone ask "why didn't you do this" and be completely lost because i don't know the flow of things.

How often should i be talking to other CNA's? or LPNs or RN's.. like should i only talk to them if i'm reporting off at the end of my shift? and also if i think they should know something if it seems urgent. I don't want them to look at me like "who does this girl think she is telling me things about that resident" I saw that happen a lot at clinical where the nurses looked annoyed with us cna's for trying to tell them things that we felt were important.

Basically if no calls lights are going off, what should i be thinking of doing other than charting?

[CPCTColeman]

Hi I have been a CNA for 9 months now and it is very scary and nerve recking when you first start out. I was very scared and nervous but you just have to remember you have an whole shift to get everything done. Pace your self and take your time. You do not have to rush even when it feels like you do sometimes. I got a whole back of lilttle note pads that I still us to chart and right down tell I get to the computer to chart. I actually make a list for my self. Doing laundry, passing ice, makeing my beds, and even changing diapers and turning and repositing people. I know what you mean about nurses seeming annoyed but do not let that get to you. It is your job to report anything and when you do not and they find out the blame could fall on you. So no matter what report for yourself and for the patients. To cover yourself even more you can report it in your charting so that it is on file and documented in case a nurse says you did not tell them. At night when no call lights are going off just check on your patients, make sure you are changing your people every 2 hours or as needed, if yall do laundry you can do the cloths of people who laundry is too full, was restraint bands or lifter pads and so on. Their are going to be times when their may really be nothing to do so just do what you can and you could even ask the nurses if they need help with things.

[Missingyou, CNA]

If you're going to have 6 weeks (!!wow!!) of orientation.....or even 6 days, they will tell you everything you need to know...AND you learned everything in your CNA class, PLUS you passed your state test and the state said you are good to go. So you are ready...probably very nervous, but know that you will learn what you need to know!..they will teach you.

Ask questions!

Your first day on your own, you will probably be a little freaked out. That's normal. It's something new. It takes a while to get to know your residents, to get a routine down.

You will learn.

You will be fine.

and yes, you are overthinking it just a bit. Take a breath. Take one day at a time.

You got this!