It is me or them!!! I can't stand it anymore!

RN1982 · Apr 30, 2008

Since when is answering a call-light not an RN's job? IT's EVERYBODY'S JOB. I'm not above answering a call-light.

Ms. Nurse Assistant, LPN · Apr 30, 2008

You're right it is everyone's job. It's just that in the nursing home I always witnessed the RNs/LPNs paging the CNAs to answer a call light when they could have done it themselves to help us out.

NewNurseyGirl2009 · Apr 30, 2008

7 patients. Wow in the hospital I can have up to 15 on a med-surg floor. I can manage to bathe about 4 of them do vitals q4 hours. CBG's a min. of 4 of them(average) take them to and from the bathroom, answer their lights, pass water and dinner trays, help some of them eat and get all their teeth brushed before bed (the ones that cannot do it themselves) And I do it all with time to spare. 7 is nothing and if the aides think they can walk all over you then they will. However what bothers me is you distinguish your work from their work. It really is all under you. They are there to assist you but it's your butt if it doesn't get done. I hate when RN's have that mentality. I consider it all my work as well as my nurses consider it all their work and our patients get good care. Try to look at it that way.

AZMOMO2 · Apr 30, 2008

I think that being a CNA in a nursing home and a CNA in an acute care setting are totally different worlds. From experience with both it seems to me that the the CNA's Tiger is working with are all lazy and have become complacent and need to be written up and their "certification" threatened. Bad patient care and neglect should reflect them as well. In a Nursing Home the CNA's with 7 patients maybe well over stressed but on an acute care its more like two or three total cares if that and a few assists. Instead of hoyer lifts and shower chairs. You are guiding someone to the shower or handing them a face cloth. A very easy day for a paycheck CNA makes the bad qualities come out more and they really shouldn't be allowed to work there. Makes me pretty mad when people like that take up space and a position that someone who really cares and wants the experience should get. Nursing is team work and every member of the team is responsible for the patients... OK now I'm venting.. lol

ChristineN, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2008

I'm pretty sure you are an excellent nurse. :nuke:
I've worked in two nursing homes as a CNA, and I was under the impression that the RNs/LPNs did not have to answer call lights/change briefs or do any of the work that we did. I've gotten so used to seeing many RNs/LPNs walk right pass a resident's room whose call light was going off for 20 minutes or more that I presumed this was just how the facility operated. I worked with several midnight RNs/ and mostly LPNs who would sit in close proximity to a resident's room and they would sit there and let the call light go off for nearly 30 minutes or more w/o answering it. Some of them will tell on us to the DON or whoever is in charge, and we'd get written up when in reality we couldn't get to the call light because we were assisting another resident. That is why I do not want to work in another nursing home as a CNA ever again. There were too many circumstances to get written up and fired. I notice a lot of CNAs have a short life expectancy in nursing home facilities too

And that's what I call sloppy, lazy nursing and I despise it with passion. I too, have worked with many nurse who think it's "not their job" to answer call lights, help a pt, etc. It's everyone's job to help pts, but if the PCT is not busy then they should absolutly be assisting.

grace90, LPN, LVN · Apr 30, 2008

A good CNA is worth her weight in gold. I love, love, love working with the CNA's who do their jobs well.

Me, too!!!!!!!!!! :redbeathe:heartbeat::redpinkhe: :cool:

:loveya::smilecoffeecup::yeahthat::cheers:

:w00t::balloons::thankya::flowersfo:

:smiletea::monkeydance::beercuphe::clpty::dncgbby::dncgcpd:

TigerGalLE, BSN, RN · Apr 30, 2008

7 patients. Wow in the hospital I can have up to 15 on a med-surg floor. I can manage to bathe about 4 of them do vitals q4 hours. CBG's a min. of 4 of them(average) take them to and from the bathroom, answer their lights, pass water and dinner trays, help some of them eat and get all their teeth brushed before bed (the ones that cannot do it themselves) And I do it all with time to spare. 7 is nothing and if the aides think they can walk all over you then they will. However what bothers me is you distinguish your work from their work. It really is all under you. They are there to assist you but it's your butt if it doesn't get done. I hate when RN's have that mentality. I consider it all my work as well as my nurses consider it all their work and our patients get good care. Try to look at it that way.

I don't distinguish my work from their work. I know that in the end it is my butt. I am SO not that nurse that refuses to clean patients and assist with ADLS.. You are telling me not to let them run all over me?.. but also that it is up to me to get it all done? Patient care takes team work. They had a job description when they were hired. They have tasks that they are supposed to complete. And you are right.. It is MY license. That is why it sucks so bad... I wish that there were no assistants.. Give me 4 patients and I'll do total care. But when I have 6-7 patients I can't give total care. Not with my patients as sick as they are.

I wish that I didn't have to rely on people who didn't give a crap about my patients to assist with their care. If you hate being a CNA... FIND A NEW JOB. (that is not directed towards you Lewis, just in general)

Tiger

Ms Kylee · Apr 30, 2008

sounds like you guys are under-staffed. it's very hard to do everything..answer call lights, turn patients, take residents to the restroom when you don't have enough CNAs. I got sick of all the pressure and don't plan on going back to another nursing home. I will be doing Home Health work from now on for this very reasons. CNAs are over worked and under appreciated

AMEN! I had one LPN on my rear end for the last 5 shifts. She's notorious for only wanting to pass her meds and sit on her butt for the rest of the shift. She abuses the aides something awful. She got snotty with me because (Oh, Dear) she had to answer a few lights for me.

Here's why: She had 6 patients, I had 18.

Patient #1 is very immobile, needs fed, turned, and changed. Patient does not roll well, so I had to have the other aide help me.

Patient #2 had me walking her to the bathroom every 5 minutes.

Patient #3 thinks that they're the only one on the floor, I'm just outside the room, waiting for the call bell to go off because I'm the waitress. I take orders for ginger ale, water, crackers, whatever they need.

Patients 4-9 were all new admits that needed admission vitals, rooms set up, and trays passed.

Patient #10 was a train wreck. I was in that room for over an hour helping the RN with his dressing changes. That also included bed and gown change twice by the time we were done.

Patient #11 was the same as Patient #3.

Patient #12 had blood going.. so in and out of the room every hour for vitals.

Patient #13 was an adorable LOL who saw me running my butt off and told me she didn't want to bother me because I was busy, but she needed her pain meds. I spent a good 15 minutes tracking down the lazy nurse because she decided it was her smoke break time. When I did finally find her and relayed the message, I get a very snotty "Did you do ABCDEFG... XYZ?" WTH? :banghead:

Patient #14 on their call bell every 2 hours for pain meds

Patient #15 turn Q2, change brief Q30, bed and gown change every hour.

Patients #16-18 Dementia patients who keep trying to climb out of bed. Bed alarms going off... race in, turn off alarms, get patients settled, put alarms back on. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.

And I get screamed at for not getting a patient a freaking blanket? God Almighty. And one aide called off Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. :banghead::banghead::banghead:

Lazy nurse got 2 smoke breaks and a dinner break... and I didn't even get time to pee.

nyapa, RN · Apr 30, 2008

This is really sad. It sounds like it is a vent page against CNAs in general. I cannot believe every CNA is terrible. Perhaps they may have an attitude at the particular facility the OP works at, and she/he has every right to vent. But please, don't lump all ppl into that category! There are plenty of RNs who can act the same way - if you choose to do a search of this sites topics you may just find examples...

Respect everyone. Don't just say, get rid of CNAs.

Becca608 · Apr 30, 2008

AMEN! I had one LPN on my rear end for the last 5 shifts. She's notorious for only wanting to pass her meds and sit on her butt for the rest of the shift. She abuses the aides something awful. She got snotty with me because (Oh, Dear) she had to answer a few lights for me.
Here's why: She had 6 patients, I had 18.
Patient #1 is very immobile, needs fed, turned, and changed. Patient does not roll well, so I had to have the other aide help me.
Patient #2 had me walking her to the bathroom every 5 minutes.
Patient #3 thinks that they're the only one on the floor, I'm just outside the room, waiting for the call bell to go off because I'm the waitress. I take orders for ginger ale, water, crackers, whatever they need.
Patients 4-9 were all new admits that needed admission vitals, rooms set up, and trays passed.
Patient #10 was a train wreck. I was in that room for over an hour helping the RN with his dressing changes. That also included bed and gown change twice by the time we were done.
Patient #11 was the same as Patient #3.
Patient #12 had blood going.. so in and out of the room every hour for vitals.
Patient #13 was an adorable LOL who saw me running my butt off and told me she didn't want to bother me because I was busy, but she needed her pain meds. I spent a good 15 minutes tracking down the lazy nurse because she decided it was her smoke break time. When I did finally find her and relayed the message, I get a very snotty "Did you do ABCDEFG... XYZ?" WTH?
Patient #14 on their call bell every 2 hours for pain meds
Patient #15 turn Q2, change brief Q30, bed and gown change every hour.
Patients #16-18 Dementia patients who keep trying to climb out of bed. Bed alarms going off... race in, turn off alarms, get patients settled, put alarms off. Lather. Rinse. Repeat.
And I get screamed at for not getting a patient a freaking blanket? God Almighty. And one aide called off Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. :banghead::banghead::banghead:
Lazy nurse got 2 smoke breaks and a dinner break... and I didn't even get time to pee.

That's terrible!

GadgetRN71, ASN, RN · Apr 30, 2008

What can be tough also is the fact that in a union facility, like mine, if an RN/LPN gets fed up with waiting for someone to do their job and they do it instead, they can get in trouble with the union. I'm not kidding. I've had similar issues with the orderlies and housekeepers in the OR.

I come from a place that was non-union. I've mopped plenty of floors, transported patients, moved equipment etc if it was going to help move things along. I went to do this in my current facility and was stopped. I was told that someone could file a grievance that I was taking someones job from them. I'm conflicted because I think unions have their place. But, many times they do reward the lazy and incompetent. Thank goodness we have some orderlies and housekeepers that are wonderful and great to work with.

I agree that the OP needs to get tough with these CNAs. It sounds like she's not lazy or has a case of RNitis. Nothing wrong with wanting your coworkers to pull their own weight, especially when it's your license that's on the line.

GadgetRN71, ASN, RN · Apr 30, 2008

This is really sad. It sounds like it is a vent page against CNAs in general. I cannot believe every CNA is terrible. Perhaps they may have an attitude at the particular facility the OP works at, and she/he has every right to vent. But please, don't lump all ppl into that category! There are plenty of RNs who can act the same way - if you choose to do a search of this sites topics you may just find examples...
Respect everyone. Don't just say, get rid of CNAs.

To be fair, she isn't saying that all CNAs are lazy, just the ones on her floor. She has every right to vent her feelings on this. Sounds like she's been much more tolerant of this nonsense than I would have been.

I don't think we should get rid of CNAs. I do think hospitals need to be more selective in who they hire for these positions. Raise the pay first off but up the training and standards too. I've been exposed to some CNAs that truly shouldn't be taking care of patients and are only there because the facility needed people so desperately.

Heck, they could make it a licensed position so this way, if they goof up and hurt someone, it won't fall on the RN(at least not 100%).