Stress of being an LTC aide CNA just too great for the pay!

[downsouthlaff]

8.50 an hour

$340 dollars a week

$1300.00 a month after taxes

6am-7am

30 residents on the hall. 12 got to be up for breakfast and in the dining room by 7. All men must be shaved all beds must be made. Nails must be cut. It's 7:05 am and 3 residents are still in bed because Mr Jones with dementia is beating the tar out of you while your trying to shave him. You finallyake it in the dining room at 7:10 and the nurse wants to write you up and chews you out because your 10 minutes late for tray pass. At 7:30 am you bring maw maw with dementia in because she can't feed herself you try to feed her and she just will not open her mouth. You try to leave with her and your getting fussed because she needs to eat. So you sit for an hour and a half til the nurse finally gets it... She's not going to eat.

8am-9am

Bring all residents back from the dining room. To the day room. Vitals are due at 9:00 to nurse. There's 19 residents in vitals today. You try to take your vitals but Mr Jones is in activities Ms Smith is in therapy. Ms. Johnson is out on pass.'until you manage to get 3 of 19 done. 8:58 am the nurse is raising Gaines because her vitals are not nearly complete.

Now residents are calling and complaining because there is no Ice in there pitcher but bed baths on bed bounds must be done by 11 before lunch. On your way to your bed bound residents ms smith calls to go to the restroom. When you get her in there you realize that she got feces all over herself and now you spend 25 minutes cleaning and changing her. Now you are on your way to do your bedbaths but it's 10:55am and you realize that they just paged over head for all CNAs to help seve in the dining room. You finish at 12:30. Now residents have to go down for a nap. Them you take your lunch break til 1. You come back at 1 to make your last round and before you can start we have a new admission coming in and were gonna need vitals weight and to assist the nurse with the skin assessment. Now it's 1:30 pm and we make our last round. Now it's 1:55pm the shifts over in 5 minutes and there's 30 ADL flow sheets I&Os hydration sheets, CNA charting, and bowel and bladder sheets to be completed. And now the Activity Director is standing in the hallway agitated because me johns call light has been I'm for the past 20 minutes but you didn't realize It because for the past 20 minutes you were cleaning BM off a lady that had diarrhea from her lower back up to her hair.

All this day in day out for $1300 a month. Some CNAs make much much less.

[TurtleCat]

I agree that a 30:1 ratio for # of residents to CNA, especially on day shift, is RIDICULOUS. How can they expect anyone to give good care with ratios like that? It's unfair to both the residents and the CNAs. And at my facility, day shift is SUPER busy with lots of people to get up for meals, a lot of baths, activities, etc. I don't see any way to do all that with a ratio like that.

At my facility, the ratio is ideally up to 1:9 on day shift, 1:14 on evening shift, I believe (not sure about NOC) However, that's if everything goes right and no one calls out, etc. If someone calls out, (and believe me, these people call out A LOT) you can expect your workload to be increased, even doubled. I kind of get the impression at the management at my facility is competent and means well, however, there's only so much you can do when all your workers call out and no one else can, or wants to, come to work.

[mvm2]

I asked that same question, and she responded that there were 30 residence on a hall with two CNAs. So it is more like 15 per CNA, but I mentioned that still was a little high for 1st shift

[funtimes]

I think LTC CNA really is one of the hardest jobs there is. I've worked other jobs that were more labor intensive, other jobs that were more stressful, and other jobs that paid worse, but CNA in LTC has the worst combination of all 3. God bless people who can do that job.

[TurtleCat]

I think LTC CNA really is one of the hardest jobs there is. I've worked other jobs that were more labor intensive, other jobs that were more stressful, and other jobs that paid worse, but CNA in LTC has the worst combination of all 3. God bless people who can do that job.

In a sense, I agree with you -- it's definitely a HARD job, not for the faint of heart, but at the same time, I think it has its rewards that don't come with just any old job. Such as, the residents -- I've encountered so many cute, sweet, funny, etc. old people in this line of work, that I wouldn't have traded my experience with, and being able to have helped them, for anything else in the world. And also, the fact that even though it can be stressful, grueling work, it serves a good and meaningful purpose -- helping those who can't help themselves, taking care of those who took care of us our whole lives.

I gotta admit though, when I first started, I was surprised at how hard the job was. I thought previous jobs I'd held had their hard days -- even the hardest days at my old jobs paled in comparison to this one. I think one of the hardest aspects to overcome is the speed and time management required. You really do have A LOT to do in a short period of time, and you have to be FAST lest you wind up running behind. You can't move slow and dawdle on one resident when you have 10+ others to care for. Sad reality of the job, but it's true.

Also, I think I was taken aback somewhat by just how abrasive and well, mean, some of the other aides were. I'd never worked in healthcare before and was shocked at the attitudes of some of the other CNAs. The way they were so hateful to the new hires, constantly badmouthing and gossiping about them, etc. I get it to some extent, that it's a high-stress job and not everyone knows how to deal with stress, so they handle it by taking it out on others. Still, though, knowing the logic of it doesn't necessarily make it any easier to deal with. If anything, it made me feel guilty for feeling like I was a burden on the other staff members.

[evmarie]

I start my new LTC job soon and you guys have me freaked out! I feel unprepared! I just passed my CNA exam... I am starting Nursing school in the fall and want to get some experience. This is the same place I did my clinicals for my class, and it didn't seem that bad. It's a pretty nice facility I am just worried that the CNAs are overworked. I could tell there were some bad attitudes already from the CNAs... But hopefully I can stick it out for two years during nursing school!

[GarrettLeonard]

Sigh. I make 9.50/hour. Today I did the work of two caregivers because the new girl working due stairs didn't know how to do things and wasn't trained correctly.

Then train her.

[WannaBNursey, ADN, ASN, RN]

I start my new LTC job soon and you guys have me freaked out! I feel unprepared! I just passed my CNA exam... I am starting Nursing school in the fall and want to get some experience. This is the same place I did my clinicals for my class, and it didn't seem that bad. It's a pretty nice facility I am just worried that the CNAs are overworked. I could tell there were some bad attitudes already from the CNAs... But hopefully I can stick it out for two years during nursing school!

You did your clinicals there so you should have seen how they operate at this facility. If you're comfortable there already I wouldn't worry. Not ALL LTC facilities are bad...but a lot of them are

Here's the thing, you need to start SOMEWHERE! Once you're comfortable with LTC you should be able to do just about any other CNA job with little to no effort as compared to the labor and intensity of work in long term care/rehab facilities.

[Sharls237]

I'm in NJ making 12.75 per hour part time with a 1:9 ratio morning shift. 30 Residents that's out of control. That's a dangerous situation for the residents and your license. How can one receive proper care with such a ratio. The facility has to have high fall rates.

[evmarie]

You did your clinicals there so you should have seen how they operate at this facility. If you're comfortable there already I wouldn't worry. Not ALL LTC facilities are bad...but a lot of them are

Here's the thing, you need to start SOMEWHERE! Once you're comfortable with LTC you should be able to do just about any other CNA job with little to no effort as compared to the labor and intensity of work in long term care/rehab facilities.

Good point! Thanks :) I am anxious to get started!

[azcna]

Try to go easy on us nurses :) I never understood why nurses were so crabby until I became one! The nurses generally want vitals by a certain time so that they can give meds (b/p meds, dig. etc). If meds are not given on time this messes the whole day up, means they don't get to eat or go to the bathroom that day, AND means they'll have to stay late 95% of the time.

Nurses also have about a billion things going on at once. For example (all of this will be going on at the same time): diabetic patient needs his insulin before trays are delivered, Dr. waiting on hold about new orders, family member waiting on hold to complain about "mother" not getting her meds on time last night, residents b/p is 180/95, another resident complaining of pain, another resident about to fall out of her chair (40 mins of paperwork & phonecalls), aide complaining that another aide isn't doing her job, vitals on ten residents still not done. Nurses really aren't just angry monsters who like to yell at their aides, we are generally just as, or more, stressed out then you are. And believe me, nurses are NOT seen as being "above" everything. We get called on our days off to ask us about what happened on previous shifts, and get scolded for not following some impossible standard.

I will say this, I stand up for my good aides (we can tell if you are a hard worker and trying your best). If I see a housekeeper or anyone giving my aide a hard time, I will step in. Good aides are truly worth their weight in gold, they are very VERY hard to come by.

One last thing, I know CNAs work very hard for their certification, I did for mine. However, my certification took 6 weeks and approx. $900 to obtain, while my RN took about 3.5 years and $11,000 to obtain. Don't judge until you've walked a mile in their shoes :)

[marlmarl12]

Cna job is the hardest job in history its not the residents its the staff they are very selfish and all for themselves they don't believe in teamwork that's what makes the job so hard.

[Compassion_x]

$8.50 for CNA is bad. I live in the midwest, and most CNAs start out at $11.25.