I quit..

I had got a job as a cna in a ltc. I want for orientation and then was suppose to have my first day yesterday. I couldn't do it. I decided to not take the job. Anyway i did find a temp job to work for now. Do you guys think this will hurt my chances of getting a job in the future. I am hoping to do home health. I just don't think i can take care of the amount of people that they want you to take care of ltc.

I am curious about your orientation, and why you felt like you "couldn't do it". How long was your orientation? When you say you were supposed to have your first day yesterday, was it your first day on your own, or shadowing someone? Could you have asked for more orienting time? I know I certainly did as a brand new aide. I had 3 days orientation which was shadowing another aide, and I still didn't feel quite comfortable going it alone, I talked to the DON and she gladly hooked me up with another day to shadow. It made all the difference in the world. It IS very overwhelming the amount of pt's you are assigned and all the tasks that come with it, but you CAN do it. I am not being judgmental, I would suggest though that next time, stick it out, and try your best!!! You are venturing into a brand new world of nursing care, and it is scary at first, but you can do it if your heart and mind is in it!

You say you would like to do Home Health care, but that will be scary and overwhelming too. You will be all alone, with no supervision or nurse there to guide you or go to with questions. Each situation has its own pro's and cons, but I have been told if you "can make it in LTC - you can make it anywhere", and I do believe there is some truth in that.

Good luck in your future endeavors!

I think the idea of taking care of that many pts at one time is what got me. Actually doing the cna work doesn't bother me. I just didn't want to have to take care of that many at one time.

How many people would you have been expected to take care of? And what are their needs? How do you know you can't do it if you don't even try? LTC keeps you busy, and it's hard at first, but you learn how to manage. The floor they started me on has a big mix of residents- a few who are up ad lib and do almost everything for themselves, a few total cares, and a lot of limited assist. The other floor I work on is all extensive assist or total care, and there are more people to take care of, but in a way it's easier because they're not on the call light for every little thing, and they don't care what time you put them to bed. It's always intimidating at first, but no one expects you to be perfect right away. Next time, give yourself a month to try it, and if you still hate it, then quit.

On the one hand, I think that if you really didn't want to do it, you saved everyone by just admitting it.

But having been at this for just over a month, and having many many hours where I want to quit and walking out the door is a dream, every day I get through it things get better. Is it hard? Oh yea you read my other post, its tough. But like the other posters said would happen, I made a bed for a lady who spends nights driving me crazy. And for just those few minutes I was her hero because I made it so nice and did what other coworkers didn't want to mess with because of her attitude. That and other moments like it are what is getting me through until school. Oh and coworkers do come around, being part of a team and not having to sell stuff is good.