dicecream

I have been wondering about one of my residents who has advanced alzheimers and hits very hard any time anyone but her husband touches her. She also scratches, grabs, and squeezes, and has come very close to breaking my fingers. She is bedridden b...

Well, just last night, one of my residents held my hands and told me I had beautiful eyes. He then invited me to get in bed with him Seriously, I am often thanked by residents, and used to say a kind of awkward "sure," in response, but since I wa...

Thou shalt not "call in sick" on labor day weekend, when there is a totally green CNA who ends up having to cover the whole floor. (green CNA was me, my 5th day on the job, with a nurse who didn't know how to say "no you can't call in", or get anyone...

Hey, thanks everybody for your replies. For anyone who wants to know how it worked out, I did talk to the DNS and she said not to cover any resident's eyes, ever. We also talked about how difficult caring for this resident was, and she turned out to ...

Not sure exactly what to say on this one. My facility always tries to use core staff because it's much cheaper than agency. Also core staff generally gives better care because they know the residents. Even if we give a good report, there are always l...

I've never had any luck with sending resumes, period. Go to the place you want to work, find the hiring manager or whatever, and find out not just if they have any current openings, but if they expect to have any soon. Make sure they have your resume...

Example: a resident whose leg muscles are stiff and legs have to be pried apart to put the brief on properly. I am always finding it just mashed in, with a bright red line marking where the elastic was pulled tight on her thighs. She can't tell us so...

If it's a large, public facility, you should be fine. They would be very careful not to discriminate. Smaller, private facilities might discriminate more. My facility is a run by a Christian group, but it's big and has people from many religions and ...

Try to see if you can get an interview with the teacher or whoever's running the program. The more they see you, the more they'll remember you out of the other applicants.

Thanks for your replies. I thought of the picture idea too, and I'll ask her husband for one. I worked with this resident again last night and got some input from another CNA and a nurse. The CNA was from an agency and had some good ways to get the r...

Or make a slipknot- half a bow with only one loop. Easier to undo and less likely to become a square knot. Yes, I have been a camp counselor.

If you're willing to stay and work at the facility for a year after you certify, you'll have a better chance. Especially if you're willing to work evening or night shift, and very high if you're a nursing student.

You're right. That does sound dumb. I guess I was new and didn't think about it much. It was actually the family member who offered to help when I said I needed a second person and she seemed to know what she was doing so I went along with it. Well, ...

I decided to start a new thread for this question. For some reason I can't edit it anymore, so mods feel free to delete. Otherwise, just ignore.

Residents at my facility love young people. They love to tell you stories and reminisce about the good old days. They are also great sources of advice. Many of them will remember your name and ask for you when you have taken the time to get to know t...

I agree that sleeping is bad. Emergencies can happen any time, and require all hands on deck. If you can't stay awake, then you shouldn't be working night shift. This is why I don't do doubles (they don't even ask me anymore because I always say no) ...

It sounds like you're doing your best. There are always little tricks you can do to speed things up, like doing a few things early. If a resident is able to brush his own teeth and shave, I might seat him by the sink to do this while I help another r...

We just switched to Tena after using Prevail as long as I've worked there. i like the briefs much better, but the pull-ups have less elasticity which is a bit annoying.

I think a family member counts as a "second person" if they are strong and able (and willing) to steady the resident while the CNA works the controls. I have done this before and it seems to be fine. Any lift transfer should definitely have 2 people....

It took me about two weeks before I lost that "oh no, how can I get everything done?" feeling. Something that helped was getting several different experienced CNAs to work with me and show me their tricks. Every CNA has little tricks that help speed ...

I have been wondering about one of my residents who has advanced alzheimers and hits very hard any time anyone but her husband touches her. She also scratches, grabs, and squeezes, and has come very close to breaking my fingers. She is bedridden but ...