parumph

Davita is hard on their FA's. But, there are two types. The type with the clinical background such as yourself. And the business manager. I've seen both collapse under this structure. My current FA is leaving due to the pressure, and he's a business man. They put so much pressure on them to push for better numbers. Better kt/v, fewer CVC pt's, and their pride and joy DavitaRX they are all but harassing pt's with signing up. They pit one clinic against another for rankings. They pit groups and regions against each other. Its no different than any other business really. FA"s get big bonus' for having better numbers. Then if you come up short for a quarter/half year, they blame you like you killed a puppy for fun. Crap rolls down hill. Oh, and they dont really pay that great. Raises are a few % (i was told 1.5% this year but heard that someone else got 2% so my FA lied to me......will be calling him out soon), and as a FA you're likely to never get one unless your numbers are top of the "class". IF you want to stay in dialysis, just become a floor nurse. Enjoy the time with the pt's. FA's are purely office jobs for the most part, with conference calls every day and sometimes all day. (1.5 years as a Davita PCT)

You're not gonna find a 1-day class. I went the fastest way I could find and it took 6 hours a day, 4 days a week, for 4 weeks.

You need a shower. BAD!! Oh, you need cleaned up after you pee'd? Ok, but no moaning and shuttering when I clean your lady parts this time, telling me to 'take your time'. I'm not a man-whore at these wages.

Several hospitals (at least in KS) would make you a PCA/Nurse Tech on the basis that you have taken and passed your first semester of nursing school. No cert needed. Maybe need a sheet of paper from your instructor saying you have taken the semester and a list of the basic skills you learned. Or if you got a LVN cert from the school, show them that, and if you have a copy of your 1st semester curriculum, that may be enough. Best thing I would say is talk to who you want to apply to. See what they tell you.

I did 3 months of contract work in my old profession this past summer. I don't list it as it may appear to potential employers I'm 'on the fence' about my current profession even tho I've been working for a long time in this field.

Also if the state has a registry you can look up online, that might be another way.

I've had similar happen. We get word family is showing up around a certain time so I go in for very last minute check and cleaning up to give them the most time possible before they may need me in there. Family walks in (opens the closed door w/o knocking) when i'm in the middle of the process. But I don't short cut anything. Still gather all my trash, clean up, and go along like they aren't there tapping their feet waiting for me. I've also had my nurse decide it was a great idea, and he couldn't wait 2 minutes, to barge in a bathroom and administer a shot while the pt was on the toilet. He came up on my blind side with an exposed needle. Never in my life have I had so much rage for one person....... I've informed my ADON I will not work under that nurse again.

Saw one of my coworkers get an "Employee of the Month" award. Taken to lunch, small gift card to a local store, quick interview. She had been there 3 months total. There is no Employee of the Month contest. Was just the bosses doing something nice. The 20+ year vets became very bitter very fast.

Quote for Truth. Coworker and I play into several rumors. And we go out of our way to start some of them. Works better to start the 'back burn' than to try to contain an out of control wild fire. And we've found by knowing about them and joking about them, it tends to shut up to gossip queens. Not as much fun to whisper about someone when you openly talk about the secret they're trying to pass about you. Strategic Bluffs!

Signature loan from your bank. $1000 loan would be pretty cheap over a year. Pay it off early with your tax refund in 12 weeks (if you get one). Could also sell an asset or something. Got any bonds? 401K loan? Gold/Silver? Put it on a CC and pay it down over time? Working FT you'd make the money back in less than a month so it is an investment.

Thats a really personal decission. Schedule, pay, and benefits will all be different. Common near me is rotating every 3rd weekend. However you have a MUCH better chance to learn something. Some will train you for phlembotomy, ekg, just whatever the floor might require you to do, or whatever the nurses might train you to do so they don't have to. If it were me, i'd jump on it.

Soloing 37 patients? Dang. I always ask the next shift if there is anyone they want me to get up in particular. Tend to be the more 'troublesome' ones I get up for them. They are grateful in return, even tho i may have only gotten up a handful. And during the shift change report I always end it with "Any questions?" That way if I managed to forget something, they have a chance to ask. As for if you normally have 2 aides and one calls in and its a floor of button mashers on their lights, do what you can do and maybe stay late to help the next shift. I would rather triage call lights and get a few people up vs. trying to get them all up and ignore lights. Thats when falls happen, and then you have that much more paper work.

I learned in my last job, that 'JOBS' aren't worth spending much time on. I spent 10 years at the same company only to get furlough'd. Was a dead end job but again, i couldn't afford to leave as I was getting paid way to well in a very narrow field. So once I was canned I looked around and decided to go into nursing...... and actual CAREER (being a nurse that is... not an aide)! And no more will I sit and stagnate at a company. One year, and if I have been held back by the company or not allowed to advance (as a CNA, i guess that means extra training such as ekg/phlembotomy/etc) then on I go to the next place. Guess it comes down to who I work with. But I am the grand provider for my family and if I'm gonna stagnate at your company cause you can't afford to move me up or train me or just won't, i can't afford to work there. Been there, done that, got screwed and the trophy. Place #1 is running out of time (8 months), but thats OK. It is my first place, and they have more nurses there than they need so I dont expect to be taught anything extra. But there are some great nurses that will teach if you are willing. Foley insertion and a central like blood draw last night. w00t! And I have over 20 app's out and once a good offer comes in, I'm gone. And once I get into nursing school, god willing, things only get better. Tho switching to a PharmD program has been in the back of my mind.

Get your CNA, go into LTC. If you're pre-nursing now, and will start next fall, get all the experience you can for your future goals. This will get you your few months of experience needed to get into a hospital job, and once you start nursing school it will make you that much better at direct care. If your goal is nursing, EMT will not net you anything in the long run as they are completely different aspects. EMT-B's are 99% non-emergency transport and care. In general an EMT needs to know more about a pt in 10 minutes than a CNA will need to know in the next month, but it wont help much in your goals. As for marketing yourself, you can possible get some different jobs with an EMT-B vs a CNA. Can't do BLS transport with a CNA, but you can't work in LTC with a EMT-B. Again, two different jobs. Since your're already accepted into nursing school, go with that. If in a few years you decide you wanna ride in an ambulance and get more Trauma, go for your Paramedic, pair it with your RN, some certs and you will have a BUNCH of options. Just make sure you keep all of them current.

I tried the same thing but the hospital I offered to work for (for free) danced me around a bit till I just never heard from them. (approx 6 months) They made it sound like they only have volly's in the summer. I may try again shortly. Already working FT but I want a foot in the door. :) Free CNA for a night on the weekends in the ER? Who would pass that up!?

Thats the best. Apply everywhere. I had two job offers at once when i was new. And even tho i'm working FT now, I'm still applying at hospitals. Don't burn bridges either. If you get offered a job, take it. If something better comes up, finish up with place #1's training and stay on as PRN. Foots in doors, networking, and experience are your friends. If you're great at your job, people will notice and offer you jobs you never knew existed or applied for. It's happened to me but i declined it. Amazing how many people in LTC have family that work in the medical field.

Rehab floor. Pt in her chair, high as a weather balloon on several meds. She dozes off for minutes at a time randomly. I was walking past her in her wc the other night, her eyes closed but shes reaching down like shes getting something off the floor. me: What you reaching for? pt: Something that isn't there. me: So why are you reaching for nothing? pt: (points at head) Cause thats not there either.

Sorry, didn't get back to the site in time to answer your question. How'd the interview go?

If NAII is like the CMA where I am, then it can be. CMA in KS does medication passes for/in conjunction with the nurse. It will open up some more chances for you, raise in pay isn't a bad thing, education isn't a bad thing (bonus if you're going to nursing school). I know on our dual-nursed floors where I work, if one calls in, a CMA generally gets moved up from NA work to pass meds. Would be a nice change of pace even if the pace is still 10000mph.

I say apply everywhere, and when you do your clinicals do your damdest to impress your preceptors. Apply there as well as you are familiar with it. (casual chat.... dont straight up ask). Also, see if your instructor will be a reference. They likely talk with the unit managers and as such if you apply, they will probably ask your instructor about you. It might not be the best job, but its experience.

Thats when you list all the options for them. Pee in brief, or transfer. Pick! (edit to add) OR, option 3. Get a cath, go in and say you need to check to see if it is going to be the right size. Then mention this will be your first one you've ever done since the nurse is busy right now. And since there's no order for a cath, it'll be a straight cath so every time they gotta potty, they get 'stuck'. lol Strategic bluff. I guess I get a bit of leeway in the fact that I work in rehab so I have the backing of PT/OT and my ADON in making people do stuff.

this was last week, and was the actual exchange. note: shift change is at 7 I go in, "What can I help you with?" "What time is it?" "It's 6:30 in the morning. You want to get up and dressed?" "NO!!! I GET UP AT 7!!" ten minutes later (i get there a few minutes after it starts cause I was busy) "What can I help you with?" "What time is it now?" "It's 6:45. You wanna get an early start?" "NO!! I GET UP RIGHT AT 7!!" 5 minutes later "Something I can help you with?" "What time is it now?" "Its ten till seven. You want to get up now?" "NO. ITS NOT 7 YET AND I DONT GET UP BEFORE THEN." "Well I have to finish my paperwork, the next shift is due in any minute, but they are always ten minutes late. They should get to you about 7:30. Have a good day. See you tomorrow." She mumbled something about getting up in ten minutes (She independent just wants attention). Went to do my charting. 10 minutes later. Looked at the day nurse, "I think she wants to get up. Let your aide know if you see her first." Stuck my head back in the book to chart. Fellow aide came out of an adjacent room and heard this and was dying laughing cause all this 'what time is it' crap started about 4am. I just took over cause she was tired of answering it, and she had people she actually had to get up.

Around me, you can always make more money in LTCF vs. a hospital. The problem is finding the place that will pay you that much. Starting at the learning hospital was $10.45/hr 3x12hr shifts a week, every 3rd weekend and a $2 shift diff for that weekend. my LTCF is $11 starting, shifts vary, and $2.75 shift diff for weekend (also 2nd and 3rd shift diffs). But like the poster above me said, you can learn and do SOOOOOO much more in a hospital setting as you can, and likely will, get checked off to do all sorts of cool stuff. LTCF is good for gettting the basics, but if you want acute care, some trauma, and more stuff for your resume, hospitals are where its at. I'm racking up my LTCF experience while applying to every hospital job I can, and I drool and froth when i see an ER/ED spot. lol

I've been planning to get mine for a while now. If you get it, don't be afraid to apply to places needing a CMA/CMT. I know at my LTCF if you get your CMA you are at the bottom of the list, assuming they even orientate you, and anyone above you will get the shift. And it can be a blessing, and a curse. I know a few that do nothing but CMA stuff, but we have a floor where the CMA is assigned 8 residents to be NA's too, as well as pass meds for all 28 residents on the floor. That person calls in, and any CMA in the building will get moved to it, and any NA will get pulled to fill in her NA spot she noramally works.

Don't worry about the current employer. I out and tell my nurses/ADON/DON im looking cause I only work PT. We all chat from time to time. Some of them love LTC, some of them want ICU, Cardiac, L&D/OB, etc. I only know of two of the people I work with that are where they want to be job wise. They rest range from mostly happy to miserable, and are always looking. Back to the topic. Just do your best. Multiple copies of EVERYTHING. Read up on the hospital/floor you might be on. Brush up on your terms, your hair and your teeth. Think of what they might ask you. Don't be nervous, but don't be egotistical. Find the line in the middle. Remember, its just an interview for a job you're already doing. At the VERY least, you will come away with interview experience, a look into the inner workings of that hospital, and if your lucky a chat with the CNA/PCT's that work there. I interviewed with a learning hospital here and when they sat me down with the PCT's I asked all sorts of stuff. They will tell you straight out how it is. Didn't get the job, but i've reapplied (now with 8+ months of experience.) And it was interview experience. DON'T FORGET TO ASK QUESTIONS!! Not dozens, but a few that will let them know you're not just after a paycheck. What they expect for dress code, how often they call-off people (low census: might be better question if you talk to the CNA/PCT's), if they offer continuing education. You are interviewing them as well, to a point.