Hi. I've found this site by couple of friends to share about there experiences. So i figured I share as many as possible while I'm in the healthcare setting. Now, i just want to share my personal experiences right now as a C.N.A , and i hope i can get some replys.
So, this is where reality hits. This is where all those signs and posters of people smiling and enjoying there jobs are nothing but a big scam. This is the truth and a fact. Being a Nursing Assistant is one of the worst and lowest degrading jobs of all time. In fact, it almost beats working at burger king and McDonalds. The thing is, unlike those jobs, people actually GO to school and PAY actually money and TAKE A STATE TEST. That's what I've realized these past nine months working as a cna.But no one cares, as i've learned. Now, i don't want to share story after story about this job since i have a ton of them, but i want to share the outcome. Maybe some short stories but that's it.
DISCLAIMER- Before i start, i know people will read this, and yes, i will be criticized . I will respect everyone's opinions, but if someone gets out of hand, ill erase there comment.
I work at a hospital. I will say this. The only reason why working at a hospital is a good place is mainly the environment. It's cleaner, wider, and feels more safe. But if your a cna, the outcome will ALWAYSbe the same. We are nothing but low-life scum doing the dirty work. We are the eyes of everyone basically. Everyone watches us and if we screw up, we are the ones who pay.
Where i work is like a nursing home. I'm literaly saying this. I work at a rehab center. and yes you know what that means. Maxs and totals. people who cant walk and we have to be the one's who do everything. most of the time therapy is there during the weekdays, but the weekends, we have to do ALL of the ADLS and weigh them. oh yeah, and FALLS. cant get enough of that! Some nurses are wiling to help, but you can't trust them. Yes, iv'e said it. There are some nurses who i can't work or trust with because they have a attitude. For example, just the other day right before shift was done, the jerk of a nurse said i had to feed him. as if i didn't have enough to do. I had to weigh one more patient, and get the rooms ready. so, i decided to feed the patient, but when i went inside, i smelled something bad, and he wet himself. God i hate incontinent patients... anyway i pressed the call light and ask the nurse to help me because the patient was confused and tried to get out of bed a lot. you know what she said? she said "oh you can change him by yourself", and walked out of the room. Believe me, i wished i would've gave her a piece of my mind. so i had to change the patient all by myself. but i knew things like this was going to happen. there's nurses you cant seem to associate and work with, and in this job you'll have to deal with it...
Another thing on my floor which is completely bull, is that our boss wants us to comply with so many things and to go above and beyond for our patients. the whole nursing staff has to be responsible for it. We(the cnas) have to pass out the trays to the patients. yes, we have to. as if we have nothing else to do. and if we don't we get in trouble. We also have to put on ted hose on all the patients for therapy.. but here's my problem with it.... usually therapy gives the baths in the morning.... so why cant they be responsible for putting it on?? i mean there getting the patient ready, so i think it's only fair that WHOEVER is getting the patient ready, they are the ones who are responsible for putting them. on.. again... were busy, do you think were going to have time to follow the petty rules? i swear, there just doing that to **** us off. the boss also wants us to work as a team, but you know they say that and you know the outcome lol.
Oh, another bogus thing on our floor, floating. You see, our floor is fully staffed with nurses and cnas. you think that's a good thing right? WRONG. if were not needed, then they send us to other floors that's just as bad as our floor, making it 10 times worse for us. Sometimes we get lucky, but most of the times we go to crappy floors where we get 10-20 patients. on those floors, we have to do vitals every four hours, and depending on the blood sugars you have to do, you gotta do them. and if there's no other floors to go, they cancel people who actually need to pay for bills, families, schooling, etc... some teamwork right? I used to work night before days, and we had to do all that, PLUS weigh every single patient we had. Did the nurses help? NO!! they didn't do squat. They were sitting and chatting while WE have to do everything else.... they talk about team work there, but it's the complete opposite! All they care about is themselves and making money!
My first time going to another floor, some people told me that it's going to be tough and probably fail miserably. when i mean people i mean the cnas. So when i went to that floor that night, i had 15 patients and i never worked so hard before in my life. i was behind, tired and wanted to go home. but i had to stick with it. After like 3 times going to other floors, i finally as getting the hang of it, but sill hated it. and since were working for the whole hospital, if we get in trouble, we answer to the floor's manager and our boss. Really. One night i went to another floor and it wasn't a bad night. Then the next day i show up to work, my boss tells me that i got written up in a incident report. Why? I didn't chart one simple thing in my vitals. i did everything else, but because of that i got in trouble. then the next day, she told me they did a report on me 9 times... NINE TIMES!!!!!! ALL BECAUSE OF ONE SIMPLE MISTAKE? and the funny thing is, it was my first time going to that floor and no one told me anything about that. that's nursing for you guys.. looking our for yourselves. I could share more about that, but think I've said enough.
Now about the nurses, some i can work with and some i cant. in fact there's only a few nurses im actually friends with because we can work together as a team.. but i feel even sometimes they don't want to help me because they feel it's my job.. yes, to the nurses out there don't deny it. If you don't want to help don't bother . i am friends with some people too, but i don't get too attached to them. maybe only about a couple of people i can trust, but that's it. im just saying not ALL nurses are bad.
in closing, i really hate this job with a passion. Yes i still want to help others, but how can i do it by being overworked and unappreciated. Some people might say,"Oh your a caregiver, and your doing it because you care".. let me say this... shut up. Listen, when i was starting, i used to think the same thing, but after all this time, and a recent back injury, i think otherwise.. i gotta look out for myself, and my future... right now, it's in the storms that im trying to get out of. but i cant, because i have nothing else. this is ALL i have. and im not gonna keep being miserable for the rest of my career. i shouldn't be doing that. every time i come there, all i think about is going home. i feel angry and upset, and stress starts to come out and i really don't need that stress. In fact, sometimes i plan to call off.. just so i cant be at that hell hole. and to be honest, im tired of feeling sorry for patients.. why, because im not doing anything with my life right now. im stuck with little money, and if i have to go back to school, i have to pay for it with my own money. i want to be at a job where people actually respect and understand how and why your job is important. you know that nursing assistants only get one day of recognition, and everyone else gets a week? HELLO? WE ACTUALLY WENT TO SCHOOL, WE PAID ACTUAL MONEY FOR CLASSES,AND WE ACTUALLY TOOK A STATE TEST!! AND YES, WE STUDIED AND PRACTICED ON SKILLS LIKE YOU GUYS DO TOO! what do you think we are, janitors, transporters? if you treat us as that, there as might as well be no such thing as a nursing assistant. believe it, i said it. the nurses should be the ones who need to do everything, since they sit around and talk after passing meds. Honestly, I've told some people time and time again that i wanted to quit, but i can't. mainly because of school. But i only have to save for a few more paychecks, and im turning in my two weeks. Until then, i try to stay positive, but the outcome is always the same. After next year, im going to be a emt-b, to see where that goes, becuase i feel we get a little more respect on what we do, more than cnas. i just can't wait to get out of this job.
well, that's it. comment, say what you feel, and dont regret it.
C.N.A2291
13 Posts
yes, that's why im saving up my money until i get that chance :)