potential newbie

[sophiesmom80]

Hello to everyone!! This is my first post, but I have read a lot of great post's that was very informative. Ok, so here is what I am needing to know. I answered an ad a couple of weeks ago for a CNA class taught by a local rehab center. A week ago and I got an interview for tomorrow for the class. What can I expect??? What should I ask??? I live in Indiana and any help would be appricated. I go at 9am in the morning. Here are some of the questions i have so far.... Is the hours set (first, second, third), are there benefits? Is there a contract to work since the classes are paid for? Am I on call? What's the pay? What supplies would I need (scrubs, ect) Are them ok questions??? What else should I ask??? Also the class is only a week long, is that enough time? Like I said, I havent even went to the interview yet and I am NERVOUS!!! I have no experiance in this field whatsoever, but it has interested me for years. What pay should I expect? Is wanting only days too much to ask for? I have two small children and I'm basically a single mom, so seconds would be ok a couple days a week, but as a permanent thing, I couldn't. so, please, tell me what to expect out of my experiance. THank you so much for all your future help.

[fuzzywuzzy, CNA]

I wouldn't be picky about the hours/shifts. They don't care if you have kids, they want you to be there. This includes weekends, holidays, and sometimes doubles. If you start acting picky now they'll most likely say "too bad, so sad" and choose someone who seems more flexible/reliable.

[sophiesmom80]

Oh, believe me, I'm not going to throw a fit about hours. On my application I only put down for part time. Which I really want full time. I guess what I am concerned about is then not telling me what kind of hours to expect. Being out of the workforce for awhile (I said I'm basically a stay at home mom because I am married, I don't have to work, but my husband is a truck driver and is gone A LOT) so I haven't worked in a long time. Affording and finding a good sitter is hard, esp in the small town that I live in, and I don't have a lot of family support. So basically, I'm wanting something definate to tell my sitter, but no, I am not going to complain about anything. This is what an interview is for, right? Asking questions and getting answers. I have no problem with working holiday's and the occasional weekend, and like I said, 2 or 3 evening shifts a week would be ok, I just would like to know what to expect.

[yousoldtheworld]

I live in Indiana, too! All facilities are different when it comes to uniforms, contracts, supplies, etc.

I have worked in a few different areas. If you'd like to PM me what facility your interview is at, I'd be happy to let you know if I have any information that might help you. If you dont' feel comfortable doing that though, that's fine. :)

In general, you probably won't need scrubs for the class portion of your class, but you might for the clinicals. They should tell you in the interview for sure. As far as supplies go, for mine, all I needed to bring was a writing utensil, but again, that can vary.

Let me know if you have questions about a specific facility - I might not know the answer, but I might :)

[sophiesmom80]

Hey!!! I just north of Muncie, your not too far from me! Believe me, if I could figure out how to PM you, I would...LOL. Once I figure it out, then I'll send ya a message with some questions. Thanks again for responding!:nuke:

[yousoldtheworld]

haha, if you click onmy name, you can then just click on "send private message" :)

[rancelumsden]

You're asking for 'general' answers that don't exist. Only the employer can tell you what is expected, how flexible they will be, if they expect you to be on call, etc.

The one general truth about CNA's is the weekend commitment. It is pretty much a 'de facto' standard that you will work every other weekend. Few people like weekends, so the burden is accomplished by rotating staff. Same deal on holidays --- they are often rotated and a lot of employees will deal among themselves and trade holidays off (you know, "I was assigned to Christmas, but I'll work your Thanksgiving if you work my Christmas.....").

But, no one can answer what the expectations of your particular place will be, especially as a part-timer. You need to go talk to them --- otherwise, everyone is speculating.

[sophiesmom80]

I wasn't wanting answers, I was asking if those were good questions. I may not have made that clear. I'm leaving for my interview in about 15 min, i'll update everyone a little later. Wish me luck!!!!!!

[CNAinTampa]

don't buy scrubs until you know what colors you can wear! I made that mistake..

[adorblepuppy]

Okay so how did it go.