"Just" a CNA

[Meowmixer]

Ok, i'm just going to give the basics but I need some advice on what to do in a situation with a nurse co-worker.

A little background info. I've been a CNA for 6 years total. I've done 3 years on telemetry, 1 year in the PICU, and 2 years in the ED, so i've been around a little. I'm also a nursing student finishing my ADN next year. By all means I don't feel like I know everything about being a CNA that there is to know but I hope one can admit with my experience I should fluently know how to do my job, and well.

I started a new job in November and since i've been there i've gotten nothing but good feedback about my work performance. I'm Never one to boast but I've always had a great work ethic. I'm getting paid to do a job so i'm going to do it to the best of my ability.

I had to switch shifts this semester because my classes are all over the place and it put me on a guaranteed 36 hours a week spent with a certain nurse (unable to change this around). Well, I put in my 36 hours this week and it was without a doubt the worst shifts I have ever worked, and it wasn't the patients. I shared 3 patients with this nurse and absolutely nothing I could do for these patients was right. I consistently offered assistance to the bathroom, vitals were on time, they were turned, fluffed, and taken care of to the best of my ability. I also had 10 other patients so i was unable to Just float between those three rooms.

If I was not with this nurse every time she stepped foot in their rooms i was in the wrong somehow, even though i received no notice she was going to check on them. Every tiny thing she could possibly find she would pull me aside and in a sweet but incredibly condescending way tell me about my wrong doing. For instance, a very capable alert and oriented lady had her first accident in 4 days, even though I offered to take her to the bathroom 20 minutes prior before i left the room after doing vitals, and she declined. The nurse came out to desk with linen and made the comment to my charge nurse, not to me, that i was right next to, that it was the second room that she walked into that I had a patient that was incontinent (the other non-incontinent patient apparently spilled a small amount of urine from his urinal that he didn't bring to my attention). I apologized, smiled, got up immediately to help, thanked her for helping me get better at my job, and each time it made her more angry.

So, needless to say this kept up all night. I continued to kill her with kindness, and it appeared to make her more and more angry. I got the impression that I'm *just* and aide to her and she feels she needs to establish a certain level of superiority over me to feel better about herself. She also made it a point to go around the unit, talking to the rest of the staff, to express how * frustrated* she was with me.

A couple weeks ago she also made another aide cry, and made a new grad quit immediately after orientation with her because she felt "stupid and incapable" after being put on orientation with her.

My question is what should i do? I know i need to pull her aside and talk to her because like it or not, until i can find a new job we must work together. I just don't want to get into a back a fourth argument with her. I never got defensive and apologized whether it was my fault or not every time she approached me. I am also going to let my manager know there is a problem beforehand in case she gets upset at me standing up to her and trys to make false complaints about me to my manger. I don't work again until later in the week so i have some time to cool down, she had me incredibly angry and frustrated before i left work in the morning my 3rd shift in a row (i've never felt to useless and insulted) so the cool down is completely necessary.

Has anyone had to deal with this before? Would it maybe be better to try and ignore it and see if she backs down?

And another perspective would help. I know nurses have a hard earned licence on the line but i'm doing nothing to endanger patients in any way. I honestly do not know what else I can do in order to please her and give her no reason to get upset besides completely ignoring all of my other patients and checking on her patients every 15 minutes, even stripping down the up at lib patients to make sure they are not wet.

Thanks for your thoughts :)

[taalyn_1, CNA]

She won't back down, and neither should you. If you keep "killing her with kindness" nothing is going to change. Stand up for yourself by telling the NM, then tell her you are not going to be treated in such a manner and will not put up with it any longer (as professionally as you can). Seriously, aides take a lot of crap from pts, family and Nurses (who have a powertrip mentality) too often, and they dont have to take it. You are there to do a job and to work together to make sure the pts are well cared for, not to be mentally/verbally abused by a nurse who doesnt want to change someone. Pts sometimes wet themselves, and it doesnt matter if you had just toileted them 2 minutes before and the NURSE should know that. Good Luck.

[yousoldtheworld]

Ugh, I've been there. Even now, there is a dayshift nurse that I rarely work with that HATES me. She nitpicks every little thing I do, and completely ignores the terrible care that a few of our aides give. Seriously, another aide's residents can be completely soaked through their pants, and she's in my rooms complaining that some of my residents shirts aren't lying completely smooth on them, and that I need to take more care. I wish I were kidding.

Ignoring it probably won't do much good - she might just get more and more determined to "break your spirit", or just view your responses as confirmation that she's doing something right. I'd definitely talk to management, and every time there is an issue with her treating you unfairly, write it down

Also, when it comes to the incontinent residents, make sure to cover your @$$. Every time you offer to take one of the incontinent patients to the bathroom and they decline, tell that nurse AND the charge nurse right then, "I just asked Mrs.X if she wanted to go to the bathroom and she declined". That way if they are wet in 10 minutes, they can't say that you were neglecting them, at least. You can also do the same when you check them and they are dry. She'll probably get sick of hearing it, but that's what she gets for having such an attitude.

[systoly]

What an unhappy person this must be. Some people just insist on not having any fun at work and worse, try to drag others into this mess. I don't think I have to tell you that you're not just a CNA, but that you ARE a CNA, no matter whether you're

in school or not. Stay the course, keep your spirits and attitude high, you KNOW you're doing a good job. If you're positive attitude and efficiency irritate Miss Grumpy, well that's just too bad. I wouldn't try to have a serious talk with her, because I don't think it would bear any fruit at all. I also wouldn't voice a complaint with the NM, but rather voice a concern. As you said you have a prooven track record so instead of complaining about grumpy say something like,"I'm really concerned about grumpy. She's so angry and stressed out all the time. Is she alright?"

[kool-aide, RN]

What an unhappy person this must be. Some people just insist on not having any fun at work and worse, try to drag others into this mess. I don't think I have to tell you that you're not just a CNA, but that you ARE a CNA, no matter whether you're

in school or not. Stay the course, keep your spirits and attitude high, you KNOW you're doing a good job. If you're positive attitude and efficiency irritate Miss Grumpy, well that's just too bad. I wouldn't try to have a serious talk with her, because I don't think it would bear any fruit at all. I also wouldn't voice a complaint with the NM, but rather voice a concern. As you said you have a prooven track record so instead of complaining about grumpy say something like,"I'm really concerned about grumpy. She's so angry and stressed out all the time. Is she alright?"

That's a BRILLIANT idea... voice a "concern" and make it look like she may have other problems that are effecting her work. That will keep you in the clear!

[jb2u, ASN, RN]

More than likely, this person will NEVER change. You can talk till you're blue in the face. It may help, but probably not. I'd say, do your job, do it to the best of your ability, and don't let anyone....anyone belittle you!! This does not stop after nursing school. There will be a nurse that has problems with that new nurse that "doesn't know anything yet." There will be a cna that "knows more about nursing than you do." There will be doctors that think you are their property. It's life and in life there are some seriously misguided people!!! Just do your job correctly and you shouldn't have anything to fear. Step away from policy, ie: leave a bed monitor off, leave a patient in urine all shift, etc, and you will have problems. In the end, you will graduate, become a nurse, and move on. This nurse will still be miserable and try to make the new cna miserable, too!!!

[jb2u, ASN, RN]

For those that ever feel like "just a cna", here is a post that I posted several years ago when I was a cna.....

we are the "kickers" of healthcare!