So I just got off the phone with my best friend, who is a RN in another state. She said that a CNA on the floor tells the patients she's a nurse. My friend said today was the last straw when she overheard the patient who sounded upset ask to speak to a nurse and the CNA said, "I am a nurse." I dont know the full details because I wasnt there, and Im trying to get her to join allnurses.com (maybe one day). Apparently, when she approached the CNA about this, she got defensive and my best friend was just trying to tell her that it would be more appropriate to tell the patients she is an aid and not a nurse, which offended the CNA because she said that she is a nurse (or they all are nurses - something like that). Anyhow, I just wanted to know you guys perspective on this, I know a couple CNAs who call themselves nurses (I mean I have a cousin who has nurse as her job on fb and she is a CNA), but this is different because its occurring in the field, not just in random conversation or on social sites. Is this a big deal? I personally think my best friend handled it the best she could (even though she said the CNA didnt seem to change her mind on the issue). I dont know if there is anymore she can do, should she just let this one ride?
i have a b.s.n. and a m.s.n., and have successfully passed the nclex, but i am no longer a nurse.
i am a former nurse. i let my license lapse after i had a stroke severe enough that i will never practice as a nurse again.
not at all the situation you have described here, yet similar. this cna has never been a nurse and i am no longer one. same thing in the end though, because neither of us currently holds a valid rn or lpn license.
someone must make this aide understand she is breaking the law, could get in big trouble if it's pressed, and could possibly cost a nurse her license and livelihood.
A couple years ago, I introduced myself as "your nurse..." The patient's family member immediately asked "are you a Registered nurse?" That's when I realized that the problem is not in who calls themselves a "nurse," but in what we do by not identifying ourselves as professional nurses. Yes, some states have very poor wording and actually protect the title "nurse." I still seriously doubt that anyone has ever received any kind of legal sanction for calling themselves "nurse."
I once met a social worker who said "I'm like nurse for a psychologist." I guess she's right, sort of, but a professional nurse doing a similar job would likely be called a Clinical Nurse Specialist. Let those who want to call themselves "nurse." Identify yourself as the professional nurse, if you have earned it. Eventually, people who are not in health care will see the difference and ask "Are you a Professional nurse?"
So still, I have no problem with a CNA calling herself a nurse. The patient will get it when it comes time for medications.
Specializes in Peds/outpatient FP,derm,allergy/private duty.
Ok, so after page 4 no one actually read the info under the title - because this seems to be waaay in left field.
Yeeeahhh . . .that's part of the Life Cycle of the Successful Thread :) and I'm about to make it worse When I started a thread it went way out there until people were talking about pink thongs and Kindle vs Nook and I just decided what the hell? It will be very entertaining to my grandkids someday when they want to know what nursing was like back in the day . .. I mean wait can I say that?
I mean they might want to know what vocational nursing was like. Unless they don't live in Texas or California. Then I can only hope someone told them that all the other states the not-nurse nurse is a practical nurse. No, hold on. Was the professional nurse an practical nurse and a registered nurse? Is a lay nurse a vocational nurse, a CNA, a tech-- what the heck is a PCT? They must do something nursish because the word "patient" is in there but unlike a CNA the word "nursing" is not. Honestly I can't remember. Most likely not.
I will put it in my last wishes that they not move to Oz, UK or NZ where you then have a whole 'nother plethora of RPNs and other things that make my head hurt.
This whole idea that I might be breaking the law by calling myself a nurse unless each and every time it is uttered or asked about I must say, "No, I am not a nurse. I'm a licensed vocational nurse."
"Are you my nurse tonight, E****?"
"No, Mrs. Smith, I am not your nurse. I'm your licensed vocational nurse."
"Well, can I have my pill?"
"No. The CMT will get you your pill."
"Is the CMT my nurse?"
"No."
morte please forgive me I'm just having fun with a bit of reductio ad absurdum here - and the typical things patients ask me and yes woodenpug some people are sticklers for a Title-- really most people are not imo they just want someone to get them help and they trust that the hospital will not hire a bunch of incompetents. I think we can at least agree that incompetence can come in the guise of a well-educated person as well.
So I just got off the phone with my best friend, who is a RN in another state. She said that a CNA on the floor tells the patients she's a nurse. My friend said today was the last straw when she overheard the patient who sounded upset ask to speak to a nurse and the CNA said, "I am a nurse." I dont know the full details because I wasnt there, and Im trying to get her to join allnurses.com (maybe one day). Apparently, when she approached the CNA about this, she got defensive and my best friend was just trying to tell her that it would be more appropriate to tell the patients she is an aid and not a nurse, which offended the CNA because she said that she is a nurse (or they all are nurses - something like that). Anyhow, I just wanted to know you guys perspective on this, I know a couple CNAs who call themselves nurses (I mean I have a cousin who has nurse as her job on fb and she is a CNA), but this is different because its occurring in the field, not just in random conversation or on social sites. Is this a big deal? I personally think my best friend handled it the best she could (even though she said the CNA didnt seem to change her mind on the issue). I dont know if there is anymore she can do, should she just let this one ride?
NO,NO and again NO!
The only people who have the right to call themselves nurses hold LVN or RN licensures.
I just go NUTS when I hear a news story about a "nurse" committing some heinoous act, only to find out it was a CNA.
A couple years ago, I introduced myself as "your nurse..." The patient's family member immediately asked "are you a Registered nurse?" That's when I realized that the problem is not in who calls themselves a "nurse," but in what we do by not identifying ourselves as professional nurses. Yes, some states have very poor wording and actually protect the title "nurse." I still seriously doubt that anyone has ever received any kind of legal sanction for calling themselves "nurse."
I once met a social worker who said "I'm like nurse for a psychologist." I guess she's right, sort of, but a professional nurse doing a similar job would likely be called a Clinical Nurse Specialist. Let those who want to call themselves "nurse." Identify yourself as the professional nurse, if you have earned it. Eventually, people who are not in health care will see the difference and ask "Are you a Professional nurse?"
So still, I have no problem with a CNA calling herself a nurse. The patient will get it when it comes time for medications.
States do not have "poor wording" just because it doesn't suit your preferences. The wording was carefully defined by the Board of Nursing in that state precisely for these reasons.
How about a DNP? Do they get to say "I'm Dr. So-and-So" in a hospital setting? No. They have a "doctorate" degree, but they cannot use the word "doctor" to identify themselves to patients because that term is protected legally. Now, even if a CNA makes up a silly argument like "I have doctored these photos", that does not mean that the CNA can now legally call themselves a "doctor" to patients. This is the exact same argument you are making about the word "nurse". What you think of as a common word is a very precise legal word in the health care setting.
It is NOT legal for a CNA, dental hygienist , or anyone else who is not a nurse to call themselves one in a patient care setting. Mothers who are "nursing" their infants can use the term since it is not a statement of a clinical job title which is not the case with a CNA who incorrectly calls him/herself a "nurse". For example, a Ph.D. can call themselves a "doctor" in a research or academic setting, but NOT in the clinical setting legally. The legal protections for "doctor" and "nurse" are specifically in clinical settings when referring to job title.
Whether or not action has been taken against someone for illegally calling themselves a nurse to a patient is irrelevant, although I would be willing to bet that it has happened or at least the Board of Nursing has threatened action to reported individuals. Anyway the legality of a law is not based on how many people have been convicted of breaking it.
I think after seeing the type of erroneous beliefs some people have about the legality of the term "nurse", I will be extra vigilant about informing people what a "nurse" is. Maybe I will even put these laws to the test by reporting to the Board of Nursing. Would you still be so confident that "nothing will happen" if you worked with someone like me?
Cool, I get your point. So, how many people have received legal sanctions for calling themselves a nurse? The world is interesting, it could be it has happened. that would be wrong. No ethical problems with someone calling themselves "nurse." Serious problems when someone calls themselves "Registered nurse, Licenced vocational/practical nurse or Certified nursing assistant," if they do not hold that title.
Except there ARE ethical problems with someone calling herself a nurse when she's not. Like, when she's talking to a patient. It's really UN-ethical to mis-represent your role when are providing care to a person who is inherently vulnerable. If you call yourself a "nurse"--the expectation is that you are a credentialed, licensed healthcare provider who has experience and expertise in a defined domain of healthcare. No one calls himself a "nurse" to a patient and thinks "sucker! I didn't specify that I'm a CNA, and not a registered nurse!". That's just strange.
Also, most doctors aren't medical doctors. If a person who held a doctorate in epidemiology walked into your patient room, called herself a "doctor" and proceeded to sedate you and do a bedside debridement, that would be a problem, no? Or are you, the patient, just naive for not asking for the "doctor's" CV?
Yeeeahhh . . .that's part of the Life Cycle of the Successful Thread :) and I'm about to make it worse When I started a thread it went way out there until people were talking about pink thongs and Kindle vs Nook and I just decided what the hell? It will be very entertaining to my grandkids someday when they want to know what nursing was like back in the day . .. I mean wait can I say that?
I mean they might want to know what vocational nursing was like. Unless they don't live in Texas or California. Then I can only hope someone told them that all the other states the not-nurse nurse is a practical nurse. No, hold on. Was the professional nurse an practical nurse and a registered nurse? Is a lay nurse a vocational nurse, a CNA, a tech-- what the heck is a PCT? They must do something nursish because the word "patient" is in there but unlike a CNA the word "nursing" is not. Honestly I can't remember. Most likely not.
I will put it in my last wishes that they not move to Oz, UK or NZ where you then have a whole 'nother plethora of RPNs and other things that make my head hurt.
This whole idea that I might be breaking the law by calling myself a nurse unless each and every time it is uttered or asked about I must say, "No, I am not a nurse. I'm a licensed vocational nurse."
"Are you my nurse tonight, E****?"
"No, Mrs. Smith, I am not your nurse. I'm your licensed vocational nurse."
"Well, can I have my pill?"
"No. The CMT will get you your pill."
"Is the CMT my nurse?"
"No."
morte please forgive me I'm just having fun with a bit of reductio ad absurdum here - and the typical things patients ask me and yes woodenpug some people are sticklers for a Title-- really most people are not imo they just want someone to get them help and they trust that the hospital will not hire a bunch of incompetents. I think we can at least agree that incompetence can come in the guise of a well-educated person as well.
no problem for me, I was surprised that the LPN were not allowed to refer to themselves as "nurses", only time i have heard of this..
It never fails that everytime there is a topic here about mispresenting yourself, the thread will get longer and longer. Because many people believe it is "Okay" tocall themselves with title that they don't have. Seriously, what is wrong with such people?
To the question, of course, it is NOT okay for CNA to call themselves a nurse. CNA is a CNA, and nurse is a nurse. these nurse title are "earned" for a reason, it is up to people's preferences to pick them up and use.
When I started a thread it went way out there until people were talking about pink thongs and Kindle vs Nook and I just decided what the hell? It will be very entertaining to my grandkids someday when they want to know what nursing was like back in the day . .. I mean wait can I say that? 
Honestly I can't remember. Most likely not.
sharpeimom
2,452 Posts
no! no! and no! it's illegal.
i have a b.s.n. and a m.s.n., and have successfully passed the nclex, but i am no longer a nurse.
i am a former nurse. i let my license lapse after i had a stroke severe enough that i will never practice as a nurse again.
not at all the situation you have described here, yet similar. this cna has never been a nurse and i am no longer one. same thing in the end though, because neither of us currently holds a valid rn or lpn license.
someone must make this aide understand she is breaking the law, could get in big trouble if it's pressed, and could possibly cost a nurse her license and livelihood.