How many of you work in a hospital?

tmow86 · Nov 15, 2010

wondering the same thing, I hope you get responses.

soxgirl2008 · Nov 15, 2010

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job? None other than my clinicals which were in LTC

What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you? I'm going to school to be an RN and from what I've heard this hospital really likes to hire CNA's that are going to school for their RN. I also know someone who works there but I'm not sure how large of a role that played.

What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital? Keep applying! I think partly what helped me is I kept applying to any position that opened so they knew I was really interested. Also if you don't already have CPR certification get it, because a lot of hospitals require it

How does your hospital job differ from your previous position and was it LTC or HH? Well I haven't actually started yet, i have orientation next week! :) But I'm sure it will be less routine and faster paced than my clinicals which were in LTC.

Pia Mater · Nov 20, 2010

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job? I worked for an assisted living cbrf for about a year, but then I hear about new CNAs with no experience being hired at my hospital.

What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you? I was actually hired for a different position within the hospital. I noticed a shortage of CNAs and offerd to be trained.

What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital? Submit your resume to hospitals even if they say they arent hiring. Keep at it and dont give up! Network. If you know someone on the inside, they can often help you out.

How does your hospital job differ from your previous position and was it LTC or HH?

At my hospital it is WAY different. I learned how to draw blood, take out foleys, etc. The vitals are taken with a machine instead of manually. Your patents come and go often. The patents are more diverse, some young, some old. The pay is less than LTC, but I think that it is a better place to work.

ctmed · Nov 20, 2010

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job? Zero. I was snatched up by a local hospital while being evacuated from Hurricane Katrina at a Job Fair. Funny losing everything I owned ended up saving me from too much LTC. Pay was low, but after about a year I went Agency and never looked back.

What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you? If you are a male, since we are so rare in this field, it really helps. Hate to sound sexist, but it is true. The nurses love having us around to lift heavy patients and deal with out of control folks.

What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital? An agency is the easiest way to get hospital experience. Beware, though. There are some LTCs that have been much better to work for and pay better than the worst hospitals. Med surg and Geri Psych are the easiest floors to get hired on to.

How does your hospital job differ from your previous position and was it LTC or HH? I do psych. While I was with agency, I had my share of doing LTC and LTAC to get my hours in. LTC seems to have really horrible culture and sharp division of labor where CNAs do nothing but the grunt work while LPNs do all paperwork and meds and RNs are only desk administrators. Hospitals tend to have much more teamwork and lack much of the "caste system" some of the worse LTCs suffer from. Only thing is that hospitals that are not level I trauma centers go through low census, sending CNAs home.

tech1000 · Nov 24, 2010

I'm a PCT and I had a semester of nursing school before applying for my jobs (one semester of nursing school is equivalent to PCT or CNA). I had deployed as a medic and worked in an emergency dep't overseas for 10 months. I worked on a med surg floor as my first tech job in the States (for 8 months- HATED it) and now work in an emergency department again (in a regular stateside hospital) and love it. I think personality is huge no matter what and having a good resume. If you know anybody at a hospital, see if you can get some sort of hookup to go talk to a floor manager or director.

gymnut · Nov 24, 2010

If you don't mind sharing...

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job?

Going into health care is a 2nd career for me so the only experience I had was my clinicals at a LTC at the end of my CNA course and doing a volunteer care attendant position at my local hospital.

What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you? Being a hard worker. The charge nurse on the floor that I am volunteering on loved how much initiative I took and once she found out I was going to be a CNA she offered me a position.

What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital? Volunteer, volunteer, volunteer! This gives you a great opportunity to see how the place runs and it will get you familiar with the environment.

How does your hospital job differ from your previous position and was it LTC or HH? I can't honestly tell you because I officially start work the 13th however as I mentioned I volunteered on the floor and it seems to be quieter. It's a cancer care floor so maybe that's why. Most of the patients are pretty independent and there rarely is a brief to change. Plus the patient turn over rate is good and it's nice to see people get better and go home. In LTC it is really back breaking work. Most of them are feeds or total care and you have a lot of dementia to deal with as well.

NiquiCNA · Nov 25, 2010

I work in the hospital after 10 years stuck in LTC. I could have gotten in the hospital earlier, wish I hadn't waited. The hospital is awesome, mainly because there are more RNS than CNAs.. whereas in LTC there are more CNAs than RNS and LPNS.. And you couldn't pay me enough to do what the RNS do.. so respecting that.. it helps. I like the nights when I am the only CNA on the floor, as I don't have to put up with the bickering and complaining the other CNAs do.

We do foleys, but dont do blood draws.. we do blood sugars. The pay is better, the benefits are better, the hours are better. And theey dont put up with the neglect and abuse nursing homes do.

azcna · Nov 25, 2010

Hospital- Better pay, easier & more technical work, RNs are mostly in charge of patient

LTC- Worse pay, harder and less technical work, CNAs are mostly in charge of patient

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job?

Over a year of LTC

What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you?

I took a PCT class, and I was interested in pursuing nursing as a career.

What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital?

Keep applying. If you cannot get in right away work for a year to get experience. I applied to the same hospital in my city for 4 years and could not get in. I ended up moving to a different city where there were more opportunities. I know this cannot be done by everyone, but it worked for me and I love to travel :)

kool-aide, RN · Dec 7, 2010

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job?

~None!

What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you?

~It's who you know when you're trying to get a hospital CNA job! My aunt helped me!

What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital?

~Keep applying!

How does your hospital job differ from your previous position and was it LTC or HH?

~There's less butt wiping and you're more of a part of the nursing team than just a "dirty little CNA." In my hospital I feel like I'm more respected than the CNAs were in the nursing home where I trained. In my hospital CNAs take vital signs, blood sugars, and record I&O from various catheters, drains, tubes, etc. It's much more interesting and you learn something new everyday.

GOOD LUCK!!!!

tmow86 · Dec 8, 2010

How much experience did you have prior to getting your hospital job?
~None!
What factors besides your experience influenced them to hire you?
~It's who you know when you're trying to get a hospital CNA job! My aunt helped me!
What advice would you give other CNA's who want to get hired by a hospital?
~Keep applying!
How does your hospital job differ from your previous position and was it LTC or HH?
~There's less butt wiping and you're more of a part of the nursing team than just a "dirty little CNA." In my hospital I feel like I'm more respected than the CNAs were in the nursing home where I trained. In my hospital CNAs take vital signs, blood sugars, and record I&O from various catheters, drains, tubes, etc. It's much more interesting and you learn something new everyday.
GOOD LUCK!!!!

That makes my heart tingle. I just finished my training course last friday on a LTC. I start nursing school in June. I called the nursing recruiter for the Hospital in which I am going to Nursing School for. The nursing recruiter told me that as soon as I get my testing date to give them a call and to rest assure they will have a position for me. I can't wait. The hospital is one of the best and people that work there are generally "happy" and I love when I read how he hospital environment is different than LTC and different in good ways. At least the good ways for me. I know hospital work is not for everyone and some people prefer LTC, but I believe hospital is for me. I can't wait! It can't come fast enough.

kelsey.kristine, CNA · Dec 16, 2010

How much experience did I have?

NONE! Just my class and three days of "clinical" at an LTC facility

What factors influenced them?

I can really sell myself in an interview. I know my strengths and I can get them across. I also know my weaknesses, but I know how to make them into strengths. While I was nervous in my interview, I just went into as confident as possible. While they were telling me about the floor, gauging my reaction(trying to scare me away--it can be really busy here), it was just making me want the job even more...and I think they saw that(I also wasn't shy about letting them know lol). I let them know, yeah, I'm young and i have no experience but I'm a fast learner, I'm intelligent, and I'm driven.

I also let them know that I'm fluent in Spanish, have conversational level Portuguese(very important here) and had a liiiiittle experience volunteering in the ED of the hospital. Anything that will make you stand out or makes you more qualified than the next person. I'll never forget the time I interviewed with a woman from Ecuador. Afterwards we had a conversation in Spanish....and it's pretty damn hard to forget the blond girl who speaks fluent Spanish lol

Advice for other CNAs....keep applying! Don't get upset by any rejection, it happens. I initially applied for a position in the ED, something I REALLY wanted...but now? I wouldn't trade my position for the world! I practiced interviewing(I mean, there are usually pretty standard questions), researched, and was honest with them. I told them how much I wanted the job and how hard I'd be willing to work. Just don't give up.

**It also helps A LOT to volunteer in the hospital!!! The hospital where I work prefers hiring "from within" and being a volunteer gave me the in I needed. While I didn't know people on my floor, I was familiar with the floor, hospital policies, etc. and people who know those hiring were willing to speak up and attest to my work ethic.

How does my job differ from LTC or HH positions....

Well for one thing, the pay. I interviewed a few nursing homes, but ultimately, turned down positions. I had my heart set on a hospital job, and I just kept at it. I also have a lot less ADLs here, which I appreciate, as does my back. I also like the fact that the patient population is so varied, it's not all older people(my youngest pt was 18, oldest 97), and because they're admitted then discharged, it keeps me learning. I'm constantly researching different ailments I see. I also ask the nurses if I can watch them do different ...procedures? They're all very helpful and willing to teach me tricks to get by, or show me things I'll be learning in nursing school. I even appreciate the fact that I can float to different floors and get a whole new experience! All in all my job's awesome lol