I've been a CNA for 9 years and just recently graduated with an ASN and will soon be working as a graduate nurse in one week... So my opinion is only that of a CNA in a LTC.
It seems that CNAs have changed a lot over the past 9 years. JMO. It use to be get the work done and get it done good and I agree with another poster as a CNA everything is a task that needs to be completed. Now though it seems that *some* of the CNAs that I work with are more concerned about how fast they can get the residents up, dressed, and to breakfast to get them out of their hair. May I repeat myself in saying *some* CNAs.
Then, though, there are the CNAs that go above and beyond. Ones that work hard to get everything done and extra so that the patients feel good.
As a CNA I have no problem doing anything that the nurse asks me to do, but sometimes the nurse doesn't realize that I'm not just walking down the hall, but I'm on a mission to do something, but if the nurse was to say I really need this done now it would make things a lot clearer. I think that the lines of communication between CNAs and nurses are often neglected and it keeps the CNA from reporting something that the nurse may find useful as an assessment as is the same for the nurse. I think the one thing that bugs me the most is when I as a CNA (pre-nursing school) saw something different in a patient and reported it to the nurse and the nurse didn't look into it. As a nurse that I have worked with said-- your CNAs are your eyes and ears to your patient because they sometimes have the ability to spend more time with the patient that that of the nurse.
I think the thing that I will try to remember when I become a nurse is what I looked for when working with a nurse. Open communication, gratitude for a job well done, and understanding that we are working together.
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