I hate being a CNA

f1j1nurse · May 26, 2015

OP don't be disheartened. Maybe LTC is just not your niche. I understand the need for you to get CNA experience while still in nursing school but remember nursing can take you to so may different paths....You can end up in public health, med/surg, surgical, ER, corrections, blood bank...so many choices out there so don't get disheartened with just one day. Trust me nursing is a broad field and there is a nurse for every one of those fields. Good luck, don't give up just yet.

allnurses Guide · May 27, 2015

OP, plenty of nurses haven't been a CNA. You don't need to be a CNA to become a good nurse. Quit OP, you don't need that experience. Many people usually become a CNA at the place they want to work. If you don't want to work there, work some where else. Which state are you in? If you're in a state with a an overabundance of nurses than you can stick it out. If not, quit OP, you don't need the added stress.

I agree with you.

I've been here a long time and there are many threads about whether you should be a CNA before becoming a nurse. And I've posted on many of them.

I'll wade in here to say that I personally do not think you need to be a CNA in order to be a nurse. There are programs that require it but for the most part, it is simply a choice.

I'm a second career nurse - went to nursing school in my late 30's. My mentor, a wonderful nurse with a Master's Degree in Nursing, told me I did not need to take a CNA class before nursing school. She said the first few weeks of nursing school is learning patient care that CNA's are mostly responsible for and so why pay for an additional class? Also, she said take the summer off and enjoy your family. Don't work. Because the next two years of my life would be very busy.

I took her advice and I've never regretted it.

Personally, I think if you are going to be a good nurse, a good team player, then that means you are simply an honorable person. Taking a CNA class does not guarantee that you will change your spots if you are not a team player.

And I've met a nurse or two who started with CNA and then LVN and then RN who were not team players and rather lazy. Again, CNA class is not a guarantee.

Do you have to work? If not, I'd take the summer off. It didn't hurt me. I love working together with our awesome CNA's and we help each other out and appreciate each other.

jgarza196 · May 27, 2015

Dude, I totally understand what your going through!!!! I wanted to get experience and a job, as soon as I could in a hospital. After my first nursing class was over I got my certification to be CNA, three letters I would grow to despise and hate!!!! I worked as a regional pool CNA and was sent to all the different hospitals in a health system in my city, and I would be placed on every and any floor/unit.. I don't want o name the specific hospital-health system, but it included five different hospitals..

I learned a lot of different stuff and really learned to appreciate what CNA's have to go through and how hard most of them work!!! What I began to hate was the fffing nurses, man I hated a good majority of them!!! There are some terrific RN's that I loved to work with, they would hustle and really work hard and that was so awesome!!! BUTTTTTTT, their are so many horrendous lvn's and RN's that made me say, " I never want to work in a hospital again"!!!!!! I transferred all around the hospital trying to find somewhere that I thought was ok, hell no it didn't happen!!!! I would just do one to ones at night, till one night I had enough!!! they put me in a room with two patients that were both immobile, one had an upper GI bleed and the other had Parkinson's or dementia, don't really remember. What I do remember is that both patients were defecating all night and I had to clean them up over and over!!!! I've smelled a lot of stuff while working in a hospital that would make a damn billy goat puke, and I never could completely get over it!!! There were days when I would get off work in the morning and I couldn't even eat because the smell was still to strong in my head !!!!

Trust me I get it, I felt like they should change the name of the hospital to defecation center as it seemed that everything could go wrong with a patient EXCEPT with their bowels, people never seem to lose the ability to crap all over the damn room!!! It is what it is, that is part of being human and we all have to defecate!!!! I never thought I would be able to tolerate the smells, but I did, and i'm glad I worked in the hospital.

The beauty about nursing is that it is so varied, they're are so many different specialties you can work in. I worked all over the hospital and now I learned dialysis, which was very difficult and stressful. I'm on my last semester of RN school and I love nursing, I recommend it to everybody!! RN's play a pivotal role in healthcare and they run the whole damn hospital!!! RN is a great occupation if you want to work and hustle!!! They're are so many different areas you can work in, my girlfriend is an RN case manager and that is another really interesting aspect of healthcare!!! So, if you don't like the smell of human feces don't sweat it homey, you can and you will find a job that doesn't involve anything to do with human waste!!! JUST KEEP ON KEEPING ON!!!! TRANSFER UNTIL YOU FIND A UNIT YOU LIKE OR SWITCH TO ANOTHER FIELD LIKE I DID (DIALYSIS)!!!

RNNPICU, BSN, RN · May 27, 2015

HI OP. I feel for you. I understand that the job you thought you would do was not. I am sure it was a disappointment. Since this population does not seem to be one you are drawn to, think about the experience in terms of what you can learn. This is more of a hospice unit.. so take a look at your patient's diagnosis, go home and look it up in your patho book, start putting together the science behind why they are now at the end of the life cycle. Seriously, look stuff up in your nursing books. make this summer about what you can learn from your patients. I understand it may be hard, but the diaper changing stuff will never be fun. Use that time to start looking at skin and wound prevention. Don't focus on the fact that this is not your area of nursing, make it about what you can learn that day to help you prepare to pass your boards

When I started off as a CNA I always felt paralyzed to talk to families. I started off by just mentioning something about the waether or a sport team. If your patient does not communicate, start singing or humming a song that you know. Distraction....

Good Luck, I hope you stick it out because it could be a great learning experience and will help you focus on what areas of nursing you like. Four shifts is not enough of a chance. Give it a full month or two. Then it will be August!!

mace8704 · May 27, 2015

Be cautious with the career advice you receive on here. It always very hasty. I worked as a CNA part time during the summer of my junior year in college on a rehab unit while getting my BSN. I had 6 shifts delegated to orientation. I despised it. The workload was overwhelming and filthy. The nursing staff was passive agressive with me when I asked for assistance bathing or transferring obese patients. I had anxiety during and after my orientation due to the work load and debated quitting. Ultimately, I asked my boss for an extension of my orientation. She was kind enough to extend my orientation, but I still felt very uncomfortable that entire summer. After that horrible experience as a CNA, I thought about switching majors and did some serious soul searching.

The great thing about the nursing profession is there are so many specialties with widely varying responsibilities. You can choose a specialty based upon what you enjoy doing and find important. Ignore the "What did you expect? Nursing is all about BMs, stress, and dying people. Duh! Shoulda done your research" comments. Ultimately, your job responsibilites are dictated by your specialty.

Ultimately, I stuck it out that summer and if nothing else, it helped me with my time management skills which helped when I landed a job in an intensive care unit where I was only responsible for two patients. Then after working on an ICU for a few years, I started feeling guilty about providing aggressive care to patients with very poor outcomes whose quality of life was very very low. Sooo...I started working with a rapid assessment/response team and applied to graduate school.

When I was in a similiar situation to yours I did the following

Short term plan

-Understand that the stress and anxiety that comes with the job is a barrier all bedside healthcare workers must overcome. Learning how to cope and reduce that stress is part of the orientation process

-Come up with routine/process that you do every shift to expedite the daily routine tasks. Ask the orther CNAs what their routine is.

-Learn to multi-task well. It's crucial.

- Let your nurses know when you start to fall behind and ask if they can help you out. Be kind and apologetic. You don't want to be perceived as delegating tasks to the RN.

Long term

- Understand that your current dissatisfaction is temporary (3 months) and is part of the learning process

- Find a nursing specialty you enjoy. Write down specifically what you like about that specialty and what you don't like about your current job role. Shadow someone within that specialty.

- Once you've found a specialty you enjoy and you've shadowed an individual within that specialty, look up the specific requirements to get into the career and the job outlook for said profession.

If you do aforementioned tasks, I think you'll start to perceive your current dilemma as part of the learning process and temporary. Try to perceive it as a stepping stone to your goal more satisfying career.

SubSippi · May 27, 2015

This is a good opportunity for you to learn how to overcome your anxiety. There's going to be just as much poop and sadness when you're a nurse, but with much more responsibility.

Pull yourself together and finish out the summer. You haven't even been there long enough to know if you like it or not.

truthteller · May 27, 2015

I'm a CNA working on an RN too. I work rehab. Yes, some people are waiting to die. That's harsh. That's a reality. Some can't communicate. Stick it out. You'll be amazed at how quickly you will come to understand their needs. It will happen quickly. You'll go home one day feeling overwhelmed and lost and the next day, out of the blue, suddenly know exactly what to do. Don't miss out on a very important idea, this experience will make you a better nurse. Put the pain you're currently experiencing next to the pain your patients are experiencing. Let it change you and make you better.

mvm2 · May 28, 2015

Wow jgarza196 you really know how to put CNA work in perspective. :sarcastic:

cdsavannah59, CNA · May 28, 2015

jgsrza196, how is becoming a RN gonna be any different. It's still gonna be days where you have to clean up those people that poop everywhere. Don't always count on a tech to be available right when you have a mess to clean up, it just comes with the job. Being a RN isn't just about passing out meds, or getting report, etc. the gross stuff you encountered as a CNA, is still gonna be available when you become RN, just saying.

Nursing24/7, LVN · May 29, 2015

Try another facility. Not every facility just like every specialty is for everyone. I hated nursing home/SNF & quit after a month! It was so bad there that I really questioned what the hell I was doing in nursing for a minute there. I then worked at a subacute facility, which I really liked but it was really really heavy lifting & transferring all the time because the patients were all on vents or had trachea tubes there & were total care. I left because I wasn't getting hours as promised & it was a very hostile work environment, so I had to move on.

I currently work at an assisted living, which I LOVE & at a hospital, which I love even more than the assisted living. The people &"you work with & a positive work environment make a HUGE difference too so take that into consideration. You just have to find your niche, it might take a couple of jobs to figure out where you excel & what you enjoy that keeps you hyped & passionate about nursing. My advice though try & hang in there 4-6 months though because you definitely don't want a bunch of one-two month jobs on your resume as a new CNA. 4 months employers are usually not happy with but can deal with, 6 months is more ideal & 1 yr at a job is the optimal scenario. Good luck!

cinlou, BSN, MSN, RN · May 29, 2015

when I first started in health care, I started in LTC I was afraid of old people. I had a not so kind grandmother and I am sure some of my own life experiences fed this fear. Then I had this awesome manager, who held classes with us on death and dieing, and other things we needed to know about the elderly. The manager expected us to visit with the residents, I thought you mean I have to talk to them too, on top of everything else. I started visiting with the residents and I learned so much from them. Sometimes I would sing with them, talk poetry, farming, whatever was their life. Try thinking of going in to work for a different reason other than cleaning up. Sometimes it is a matter of flipping our own brains way of looking at things. That was 1978. I never wanted or even thought about being a nurse, it was either that or work in a factory. Now I don't ask why I became a nurse, I ask why do and did I remain in nursing with all the other options now available. Because it is not what I do, but what I am. Find who you are and pursue it with all your might.

AspirantNurse · Jun 1, 2015

I think you should stick it out. If not at this facility, then at another. The work is hard, heavy, and often gross, yes. I've done it for two years, trust me, I understand. But it's also a rewarding, eye-opening, and invaluable experience. Part of your panic almost certainly comes from the fact that you are brand new to this. My first two weeks as a CNA were chaotic, and I times I felt like I was drowning in work and confusion. But you will get through it, and you will get better.

#1. Mentor with different people, and then try and stick with the aid is the most helpful to you. Watch for the ones who frequently check in on their peers. Shadow them if you can.

#2. Ask for help.

#3. Ask for help.

#4. Seriously, ask for help. Don't just go through the day confused and drowning in work. Your in orientation. Get the help you need to get through the day.

#5. Remember that even if it seems like the resident you're caring for is checked out, they're probably not. A soft touch is still comforting. Clean skin still feels good. A fresh brief is still a relief. A hot shower still soothes aches and pain. A smile still warms their heart, even if they can't quite smile back.

#6. Think about your day in advance. This might not be as easy right now, when you don't know the residents and probably don't know what assignment you will have before you even arrive. But if you do, think about what order you will do things in. It really, really helps.

#7. Remember that CNA work is just about as tough as it gets. If you can do this, you can do anything. Even if you end up in an office environment, from this you will learn multitasking skills, you will learn crisis management skills, you will learn stress management skills, you will learn team-work, you will learn customer service skills.

#8. If you become an RN, you will likely be a charge nurse over CNA's at some point. Learning this job will give you insight into what they need from you as a nurse, as a leader, as a supervisor.

#9. Doing a job that scares you, that challenges you, that pushes you to your limits, no matter what that job is, will help you to develop mental fortitude and strength of character that will serve you well in all areas of your life.

#10. Ask for help.