Is it a good Idea to become a CNA first?

Lisa CCU RN, RN · Sep 22, 2005

i was wondering if anyone out there either is a cna or if they think it is a good idea to become one to gain experience.

ye. being a cna will either deter you from nursing or make you love it. imo, if you can handle being a cna, you will be able to handle being a nurse. :nurse:

allnurses Guide · Sep 22, 2005

There are a bazillion threads about this and some quite recent. If a mod would be so kind as to link some here . . .or send me a pm to explain it to me, then I'd be happy to do it.

My answer is no, you do not have to be a CNA first. I didn't. I'm a team player at work and help out my CNA's when I have time . . . or even if I don't. We had 10 patients, 2 RN's and one CNA yesterday and while the CNA took a patient to the shower, we made the beds. I put a patient on a bedpan. I helped a patient up to a BSC.

I don't think being a CNA will necessarily tell you much about being an RN . . . it will tell you about basic patient care though.

I was encouraged NOT to become a CNA because it would have taken time away from my family the summer before I started the nursing program and I wanted to be with my family - they were about to sacrifice big time for me to go to school.

You learn the CNA stuff the first semester of nursing school too.

It can go either way . ..

steph

TraumaRN1983 · Sep 23, 2005

I think being a CNA before becoming a nurse can be somewhat beneficial, but it probably won't make a big difference in the long run. My first clincical my first semester of the program we had clinicals at a long-term care facility, and we did a lot of CNA-type work. It was helpful because it taught me a lot about patient care, but I don't think I needed to actually work as a CNA to figure that out. That clinical made me want to become an RN even more, because I want to do a lot more than perform pericare and help people to the bathroom. Not to say that what a CNA does isn't important, it is, it just wasn't what I wanted to do for a living.

labman · Sep 23, 2005

I think CNA is awsome before nursing school. It makes you comfortable with people and will be pretty benificial to your first semester in clinicals. It is a great job to have throughout nursing school. All I know is it won't hurt.

Hope this helps a little