MA's Calling Themselves Nurses?

It is illegal for anyone to refer to themselves as a nurse without the proper credentials. It constitutes fraud. Now whether or not any actual harm results from it is another matter. However, you as a patient have every right to know what skill level is attending to your needs. Also, as a Registered Nurse, I think it would be quite appropriate to correct persons who are incorrectly presenting themselves as members of my LICENSED profession.

Doctors may find it easier to refer to "all" of their medical personnel as nurses, but I think it sure sets them up liability wise-a lawsuit waiting to happen!

Just because "everybody does it"-doesn't make it right!

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Just FYI: Some ADN programs require CNA training as a pre-requisite, but not all of them do. It is not a statewide requirement, but a discretionary thing which varies between schools.

Having been a Clinical Nursing Instructor for several years ... both at the LPN and BSN level, I found that students with CNA training had one great advantage over other students.

That advantage was they had already encountered the experience of "hands on," and were not frightened by having to touch a ("stranger") patient.

CNA's and LPN's always did better in clinical for not only that reason, but also because they had already seen, or had experience of caring for some types of equipment.

If I had a student who was having problems with nervousness at patient contact, I always encouraged them to be a Nursing Assistant (CNA, PCA, whatever the title) during a semester break.

The change in their confidence level in the clinical setting afterward was very noticeable.

I wasn't trying to suggest that a CNA pre-requisite is a bad idea. Quite the contrary. I think it's a great idea. I was merely pointing out that it's not, as previously stated, a California requirement.

I feel like this until MA has endured the work, I went through he/she has no right to put that word in their mouth. Last I checked MD's do not dish out licensure so their word means squat. The bottom line is that everyone wants to take a piece of what nurses do on a daily basis yet doesn't have a clue what nursing really entails. We are the backbone of the healthcare profession and every agency or some crack pot legislation is always trying to justify why unlicensed personnel should be able to do 1/8 of our job when it is not what nursing is all about! Nursing has came a long way and has a ways to go! :angryfire

I wonder how a certified medical assistant would feel about a person who was hired to work in a doctor's office, with no prior experience or credentials, with OTJ training only, calling themselves a "medical assistant". (After all, they do the same thing, right?)

I wonder how a certified medical assistant would feel about a person who was hired to work in a doctor's office, with no prior experience or credentials, with OTJ training only, calling themselves a "medical assistant". (After all, they do the same thing, right?)

There you go.

anyone can legally call themselves a "nurse". however, only those w/ an RN license can call themselves a "registered nurse". report them to the board of nurses. they should be the ones to deal w/ this person.

This is a sore subject for me right now. I am graduating this December, and while my sister says that she is proud of me, she is always saying that she knows just as much, or maybe more than me because she worked as a non-certified aid in a LTC for years. The reason that she feels that she knows so much is that for some enormously frightening reason they would regularly have her hand out meds. I have tried to warn her that she should never do that again because it is illegal, but of course I don't know anything, and by the way, why don't I go to med school!!!! arghhh :angryfire

anyone can legally call themselves a "nurse".

Have you read any of the posted cut-and-pastes from various BONs in this thread?

In many states, it is for anyone who is not licensed as a nurse to refer to themselves simply as a "nurse."

Have you read any of the posted cut-and-pastes from various BONs in this thread?

In many states, it is for anyone who is not licensed as a nurse to refer to themselves simply as a "nurse."

I agree. It's incredibly frustrating. *Sigh*

This is a sore subject for me right now. I am graduating this December, and while my sister says that she is proud of me, she is always saying that she knows just as much, or maybe more than me because she worked as a non-certified aid in a LTC for years. The reason that she feels that she knows so much is that for some enormously frightening reason they would regularly have her hand out meds. I have tried to warn her that she should never do that again because it is illegal, but of course I don't know anything, and by the way, why don't I go to med school!!!! arghhh :angryfire

Good God! CNA's can't even pass out meds in California. It's allowed in some states, but not here, and she's not even a CNA? She better watch out. If the state got wind of this, or did an inspection, she would be out of the medical profession for life. They've run people out of the profession for a lot less, that's for sure. :uhoh21:

As far as her other comments, I think it's pretty obvious she's jealous. A lot of people who either don't go through nursing school, or could never make it through nursing school, love to claim they know as much as nurses do. I'd like to see them try it ... school, that is, before they make such outrageous claims.

In my classes, I notice that techs, aides, etc. who flunk out, also tend to be the ones who claim they know just as much as nurses.