CherokeeChick

I had thought of that. I'm a pretty timid person and am never shy about asking for help. I don't think that would be a problem. I always deferred to my RNs when I was an LPN.

I don't think I'd like the clinic environment. I worked in a physician's office for a short while, and didn't like it either.

Thanks so much for all the quick responses. No, the paperwork wasn't the only thing I disliked about being an LPN. It was just very highly rated. Actually, I hated most of it, including passing meds, responding to codes, dealing with the doctors, having my butt on the line for the entire shift. I hated having to make decisions, prioritize, and supervise people. I just wasn't cut out to be a nurse, and I think that's why I was so miserable working as one. I just loved doing the direct patient care. And, as a nurse in the hospital in which I worked, I simply didn't have time to do it. I would watch the nurses and CNAs who took care of my father recently, and really envied the way the CNAs were able to spend a bit more time with him and didn't seem as rushed. The dynamic between the CNAs and the patients is what I always wanted....and is what is drawing me back now. Not to slander nurses. Being an LPN is simply not for me. It's why I quit. I wanted to be a nurse when I went to LPN school. I had never worked in the medical field at that time, and had no idea what it entailed. Once I got there, I changed my mind. Perhaps I had the glamourized version in my head. Who knows? I just learned that I wasn't nurse material and spent 10 long years in a job I hated. And spent most of that time jealous of the CNAs who were taking physical care of my patients. I guess I just finally realized I entered the wrong branch of nursing all those years ago.

Hello, all. So glad I found this site. I know this isn't the norm, but it's a situation I've found myself in. I became an LPN in 1991 and worked for about 10 years. I totally became burned out due to the paperwork, 12 hour shifts, and ridiculously high patient loads (16--25 patients a shift) that I was responsible for. I became a nurse to take care of patients and wasn't being allowed to do so due to paperwork and other hinderances. The CNAs were taking care of my patients and I was doing paperwork. I hated it. As a result, I left nursing and stopped re-newing my license. Recently, after spending time with my father who was hospitalized a great deal before he passed, I have been bitten by the undeniable urge to get back in a hospital to work! I don't want to be an LPN, so making my license active again doesn't interest me. I want to be a CNA/PCA in a hospital setting. I want to do hands-on patient care without all the rest of the stuff I hated. Since leaving nursing, I have been working in a domestic violence shelter as a victim advocate. My question is this: Can I take the test to become a licensed CNA/PCA as I stand now? I live in Tennessee. Any suggestions on how to take this next step and be able to do what I truly love? Thanks in advance. Lisa