MadruGada

chacha82: re $1600 is EXPENSIVE Who cares? Just take it from the taxpayers, they're used to being screwed. re CNAs do not make big money In New York state a CNA with just 12 hrs overtime per week can gross an average of nearly $16/hr = >$40K/yr. This means a young couple with a work ethic can still buy a house. This with no college education, just a high school diploma (or even a GED) and passing a 5-week CNA course. Of course, this rarely happens anymore here in this state. It's the work ethic part of the equation that has been all but dissolved by Liberal handouts. It's a welfare mentality now, where everybody deserves a good life handed to them. They're entitled to it. Paws2people: re endless hours of Youtube videos to learn the skills Many are flawed or outdated, evident by the comments below the videos, which identify incorrect steps. re When I got my hospital job, I was shocked to learn that most of my coworkers didn't pay a dime for their CNA class Generally speaking, lousy hospitals with high turnover rates offer free classes, or even paid training, especially to those who start out with them as a NA (Nursing Assistant, but not certified). I'm not implying the hospital you're employed at fits that description, it may very well be a stellar institution. But for the most part the most coveted hospitals don't need to offer extra incentives for joining their teams and their CNAs have in fact paid for their own training. This can hold true for nursing homes too. The best nursing home in our area offers neither free classes nor paid training. It doesn't need to, it's got a very low turnover rate and a reputation for being a great place to work. twinsmom788: re In my state, most of the programs are nursing home based for 2-3 weeks. Then the students have about 4 months to work before they must pass the certification exam In New York state most programs are 4 weeks of sitting in classrooms located miles away from the nursing homes, and then 1 week of clinicals in a nursing home where >1/2 their time is spent feeding the residents. The only other skills during our "clinicals" were peri-care (once), partial bed bath (once), and dressing (twice). And none of those four skills used the sequence, or even the materials, that students are required to follow/use to pass the state exams. (Which, by the way, students may have to wait 4+ weeks to sit for - all the while slowly forgetting more and more of the skills with each passing day.) There are 20 possible skills students could be tested on, the other 16 skills not mentioned here were not used at all during a week of clinicals. Furthermore, students in our "clinicals" were not even allowed to do two of the skills: ambulation and transfer. And those two are part of the 6 "Promotion of Health and Function" skills, students are guaranteed to see one of the six on the state test. (Come to think of it, we never saw a single gait-belt there... it's just as well that we didn't do ambulation or transfer.) @LDRNtoB re "What classes are your four?" Nursing I, Nursing II, Nursing III, and Nursing IV. jaycam: re I was the student on a training grant, the one already working in home health for years as a caregiver Years as a caregiver is a good requirement for training grant eligibility. re I took it rather seriously since I needed it to get into nursing school. What's the connection between taking CNA classes seriously and getting into nursing school? re What will you do when it's your patients who want absolutely nothing to do with your sage advice? You mean I'm gonna have patients asking for advice on CNA programs? re Everyone is an adult You wouldn't say that if you'd attended the same CNA course that I just completed. re Learn to occasionally let go and relax. I learned that 30+ years ago and I'm an expert at it. There's a right place and right time for almost anything. re If you don't, nursing school is going to be a special kind of torture. You're wrong, again. I loved my pre-req classes with the pre-nursing students (and looking forward to being amongst them again), in classrooms where all of us sat up straight, took notes, asked relevant, meaningful questions, and shut up while instructors were speaking.

I am a 50-year old former teacher pursuing a 2nd career. Last Fall semester I applied to an RN program at a community college in the State University of New York (SUNY) system. This particular program had 160 applicants. Only 48 ( Most of my classmates, on the other hand, will be busy with 3, 4, or even 5 classes per semester, as they haven't already completed a college degree and are basically starting from scratch. With relatively a lot of time on my hands I decided I wanted to gain some work experience in acute care. Problem is, hospitals don't hire 50-year old former teachers with no experience in a medical field. At least not for acute care, at least not in New York state. So, a month ago I sat down with a representative of a local CNA course, asked a few questions, forked over $1,600+ out of my own pocket, and just today completed the 4th week of a 5-week (125-hr) CNA course. A week from tomorrow I hope to complete the Prometrics proctored exams and apply for an acute care position at a small regional hospital known for hiring CNAs. Last Saturday was 1 year since I joined this AllNurses group. I had lurked for a few months prior to joining. I have learned an incredible amount re Nursing, far more than any other single source, and have recommended this site to several RNs and prospective RNs. Until now I really haven't had anything to contribute, it has only been take, take, take, and no giving back. But finally I have something I'd like to offer. If you are paying for a CNA course please do yourself a favor: pay for one that your fellow classmates are also paying for themselves, and not one where your classmates' tuition is being paid for by the taxpayer. I am in a class of 13 students. Ten of whom are employees (UAs, Unit Assistants) of a local nursing home and 3 (including me) who are not. The ten are on paid training. So get this: the ten on paid training are not only attending a $1,600 course for free, but they are getting paid $10+ per hour x 125 hours = $1,250+ over a 5 week period. And, like anything else in life, when something is handed out there's little to no appreciation for it. Topics initiated by the ten on paid training in the last 4 weeks during class time: Bieber, Trump, sex (hetero), drugs, sex (transexual), who can hump the mannequins fastest (this one complete with enactment), the cheating boyfriends (boyfriends of the female students and boyfriends of the male students) who gave them gonorrhea, latest tattoos (this one is show-and-tell), how much of the neck can be covered in tattoos until it's actually considered face, and other themes fundamental to the pillars of society. These were just the ones of greater than 20-minute duration. There were others of shorter duration, all Jerry-Springer-worthy. All in all non-CNA related topics have constituted at least 1/2 of our class day. And the three of us who collectively chipped in $4,800+ sit and look at each other in amazement. What about the 4 skills that require documentation? We know we are gonna get one of those on the test, right? Let's hammer those home, huh? And the 6 "Promotion of Health and Function" skills that we are also guaranteed to see one from. Hey, can we talk about them? Or better yet, how 'bout we practice them some more. The instructor is an RN, and means well, but is all too easily persuaded to talk about anything other than boring CNA stuff. That she is leaving for another job next week, and that this is the last CNA course she'll ever teach, doesn't offer much incentive to stem the tide of garbage. Back to "The Ten." They couldn't give a flying, fornicating, fecal fragment whether or not they get through the Prometrics hurdle the first time around. NYS taxpayers are pathetic suckers, 2nd only to Californians. How dare you discriminate between those who pass and those who fail. Don't you know discrimination is bad? Tolerate them and grant them another chance. It's just money. Give them a hand, they won't take an arm, really. (This is why states like Texas are losing their population at an ever alarming rate to states like NY and CA and... er, um, wait, what?) Age is the factor here, right? The Three are older than The Ten, right? Well, I'm old. But the other two are not. They are the same age as The Ten. Education is the factor here, right? Well, I'm educated, but the other two are high school grads, like The Ten. Hospital prospective employees vs nursing home prospective employees? Hmmm... I've given this one a bit of thought. The three of us are, in fact, not interested in nursing home employment. But in the end I'm left with source of payment as the only real variable. As sure as the sun rises in the East and sets in West, it's the source of the funding, and the ensuing appreciation (or lack thereof) that's the only thing at play here. I drive home each day knowing that I'll pass the written portion with flying colors. It's not nearly as difficult as A&P I & II, and Micro. But lately, more and more, I have been up at night trying to memorize the materials needed, and all the sequential steps required, for perineal, and catheter, and dentures, and partial bed-bath, and bedpan, and the other "Personal Care Skills." After all, somebody has got to, and it sure as Hell ain't gonna be The Ten, so might as well be me. And wouldn't it be ironic if "the RN student" you know the idiot who paid for the course out of his own pocket, was the one (or one of the ones) to fail the CNA test? I still can't help to think though, that all that time spent on Jerry Springer rehearsals could have been better spent on CNA stuff. Another 60+ hours on CNA skills could have gone a long way toward easing my concerns. I don't blame The Ten. I can't. I'm an existentialist, so I can only blame me. I blame myself for not asking the question last month, "How many students are paying their own way vs how many have duped the taxpayer into paying for them?" Well, I wouldn't have worded it quite like that. Fiscal conservatives aren't popular in socialist New York. But I'd certainly have searched for a CNA program that consisted primarily of paying students. I blame myself for enrolling in the CNA program nearest my residence, instead of driving up to an hour away for a CNA program funded by the students, not by the taxpayer. I am kicking myself harder and harder each day for not asking the question last month. Don't be me. Ask the question. Get into a program with like-minded people. Don't make the same mistake that I did. And now that you've read the post that I wish I had read a month ago, you have no excuse.

I realize this is OT but I expect to be employed soon in a CAH and so have been reading up everything I can on them. By and large the comments seem to be positive. Could the OP (or anybody) please elaborate on the above excerpted quote? Thanks!

These whiny posts are getting old. The two threads which are currently trending most are this one and "Why I'm leaving nursing." Both have nurses crying after 6 years. Is 6 the magic number? Both are bedside hospital settings. Who told you to choose that over the 487 other options? And who told you to renew your initial contract? No sympathy for either of you nor for any crybabies. All of you get what you deserve for not listening to ShelbyaStar when s/he wrote, "... hospitals act as though you should be kissing their butts for the opportunity to work for them, ..." https://allnurses.com/why-rns-avoid-ltc-positions-t414259/?page=5 As long as new, naive nurses cause hospital positions to be coveted and drive past all the other open vacancies (LTC is merely one of many) on their way to submit their resumes they will continue to be physicians' doormats. Enough with the fake status rubbish, no it's not cool to work in a hospital. Have fun at CostCo. May you make "employee of the month."

Why I Left Teaching to Pursue a Career in Nursing I just finished reading an article on AllNurses.com entitled Why I'm Leaving Nursing” which prompted me to write this post. I decided to leave the teaching profession I once loved dearly and at close to 50 years of age pursue a career in nursing. The primary reason is the implementation of Left Liberal ideologies that have contaminated so many classrooms on so many levels. Unlike the author of the aforementioned article, UK nurse88”, the decision to leave my career was not a very hard decision” for me. The solution was as clear as day. I first qualified as a professional public school teacher exactly 20 years ago. I enjoyed my four years as an undergraduate student and my two years as a graduate student. I could not wait to become certified and get my own classroom. I remember thinking, "when I qualify I will make a big difference and help students the best way I can.” I became an effective teacher as I am quite efficient at simplifying complicated ideas and getting the point across to others. I used to go into work so happy at the thought of seeing my students, seeing their progression, and meeting parents on Parent-Teacher Conference days. To me at that time there was no greater joy than seeing my students at graduation ceremonies, signing yearbooks, influencing young people to make positive contributions to society. Fast forward approximately 10 years and I, unlike the aforementioned author did not shamefully hate to admit that I loathe” what my career had become. I merely loathed. That's all. I wish I didn't have to drag politics into this, especially with the next US presidential election less than a month from now. For what it's worth I'm neither a Republican nor a Democrat. I'm an independent. Voted for Bush the first time around but not his second. Ditto on Obama. Of all the major employment sectors, however, few have been so negatively affected by politics as public education. The victimhood culture has become firmly entrenched in the classroom. Case in point: A search of Google images for Explain These Bad Grades” reveals an excess of 200 websites all containing the same exact comic frame. The frame consists of two boxes, each containing a student, a teacher, and two parents. The first is dated 1969 and depicts the parents demanding that their submissive son Explain These Bad Grades” while a concerned teacher looks on. The second is dated Today” (2009” in some) and depicts the parents demanding that a submissive teacher Explain These Bad Grades” while a gloating student looks on. The specific dates themselves are less relevant than the message and posturing. In 1969 I was only 1 year old, but as a teacher in the late '90s and start of this century I normally had the support of parents and administrators when a student's academic and/or behavioral performance were less than adequate. Furthermore, grade inflation and social promotion were frowned upon. Fast forward to Today” and we find both quite rampant (lest any students get their feelings hurt), and all too often teachers find neither administrators nor parents their allies when it comes to enforcing classroom behavior. The magnitude of this paradigm shift has been unprecedented. What initially began slowly has increased in momentum with each downward spiral. Now, mix this misaligned victimhood in with the social justice warriors' racist Black Lives Matter movement, add in the myth of White Privilege, and then finally the coup de grâce, the bigotry of Restorative Justice, and it's clear why public education has gone to hell in a hand basket. Minority students can no longer be disciplined as can Caucasians (even in schools where minorities are actually the majority). What they can do is spit in their teachers' faces, physically assault them, upload the whole spectacle online, get credit for it going viral, and be back in the classroom the next day more popular than ever. Think I exaggerate? Then you're spending too much with the politically correct CBS, NBC, ABC, CNN, MSNBC, and/or the New York Times and not enough with DrudgeReport, BreitBart, EAGnews, YouTube, Fox, and/or the New York Post. The Left has brought their culture of impunity to the classroom and assigned it front row seating. I know this is not an exaggeration because I myself have been berated, threatened, and physically assaulted, by students, administrators and/or parents. And I've seen many a peer humiliated in much the same manner. I'm not so naive to believe nursing is entirely exempt of politics. No. I assume it's there, here and there. But I also assume that one needs to look more diligently to identify it, whereas within the realm of public education it's blatant and in our faces - literally! Like the author that influenced me to write this, I too can state, This is not a rant or a dig at a profession that I worked so hard for. This is why I'm leaving the profession.” Unlike the author that influenced me to write this, I'm not going to share some of my experiences so that people have an idea of why I've taken the decision to leave.” (It wouldn't be very politically correct of me to divulge details now would it?) Suffice to say that the experiences of teachers detailed by EAGnews are real. The site has no agenda other than the presentation of truth. I deviate from the author as well in that I have felt no guilt whatsoever of making the decision to leave the profession that I once loved.” I decided to leave because the field of education is no longer worthy of my presence - that simple. The nurse who left her/his job was negatively affected emotionally as well as physically. Same with me. But I have also been negatively affected mentally, psychologically, and physiologically. No thank you, you can keep it. I'm too old now to be an optimist anymore. I'm not and never have been a pessimist. Now, more than ever, I am a realist. Part of this entails awareness of the fact that nursing presents many challenges I haven't faced as an educator. There won't be students but there will be patients, physicians, and of course the infamously notorious clashing egos of fellow nurses that have been the subject of at least four books. (1. Ending Nurse-to-Nurse Hostility: Why Nurses Eat Their Young and Each Other; 2. Toxic Nursing: Managing Bullying, Bad Attitudes, and Total Turmoil; 3. When Nurses Hurt Nurses; 4. ”Do No Harm" Applies To Nurses Too!). But there won't be the politics, the disgusting, vomit-inducing, projectile-vomit-inducing Liberal politics, at least not to the degree with which the average educator of today has been burdened. Opportunities within the field of education, in spite of the millions employed within its confines, are relatively limited when compared alongside nursing. Yes, there are DoDEA teachers who are fortunate enough to work with the children of active duty military. Yes, there are positions in private schools. The former however are quite coveted, someone pretty much has to die for a vacancy to open. The latter pays not a whole lot more than many entry level jobs. What about postsecondary education you ask? Don't even bother asking, it's been taken hostage by the Left Liberal Loons' safe spaces long ago. The author of Why I'm Leaving Nursing” claims that s/he really went into nursing to make a change.” I'm not going into nursing to make a change. My life is roughly 2/3's finished already. I'm not looking to make a change anywhere except within the remainder of my very own life. Selfish you may say, but realistic I say. My first 10 years of nursing can, assuming contracts of 2 to 3 years duration, present at least three very different work environments. Money is secondary at this point in life, freedom to change direction on a dime is paramount. Even in the relatively economically depressed region in which I currently reside the wide array of available nursing positions advertised during just the last few months alone has been rather impressive. I joined this nearly 1 million member strong forum of AllNurses.com during the second week of August 2016, lurked for many months before that, and two months later am just now posting my first message. My eyes well up with tears of joy every time I come across posts illuminating just how many choices and opportunities and options and possibilities are available within the field of nursing. Ahh just listen to it again: choices and opportunities and options and possibilities… choices and opportunities and options and possibilities. After the stranglehold, the claustrophobic suffocation of being a teacher, I could sing choices and opportunities and options and possibilities and choices and opportunities and options and possibilities all day long. And yeah, I've changed subjects, grade levels, schools, school districts, and even states. The Libs have hijacked each and every layer so thoroughly that changing direction is futile, you'll just wind up back at the drawing board again. Nursing can be one on one, one on 100, or any number in between. With lots of coworkers, only a few, or none. Night shift, day shift, or a combination thereof. Part time, full time, or over time. Bedside or not a bed in sight. Hospital or miles from. Private sector or public, with reasonable pay available in either. All career choices come with challenges. I wish UK nurse88” all the best in the future endeavor(s). May the new challenges not become insurmountable. If it's any consolation, s/he could have done much worse with the last six years of his or her life. I would not at all be surprised if s/he does eventually return to nursing, albeit to a much different environment than the bedside hospital settings described in the article. In closing I would encourage any and all nurses who feel their careers have been negatively impacted by politics to please chime in. Unlike education, the choices available in the field of nursing are so numerous that they actually need to be whittled down by today's new nursing grad. I've got my red marker out, the one I haven't used since my last teaching contract, and am ready to start crossing off some choices and opportunities and options and possibilities. Bring it on.