Tired of attitude from certain PCA!!! (LONG)

[j_b_221]

We have this certain PCA on our floor that is driving everyone crazy!! First of all, don't get me wrong, I love my PCA's and a good one is worth gold. This one however is TROUBLE!...He doesn't care about his job or the patients. He is only working until he gets out of school in a non-health care related field. First he never does anything, he gets vitals (very slowly) and doesn't even get sats, even though he has been told many times that we need this. He starts late, so he is not finished in time to get 9pm blood sugars. So we have to get them, then after vitals, he sits on his a$% and does nothing. Someone needs to go to the bathroom, you tell him, 15min. later he is still sitting on his butt. You end up having to do it because the patient is about to pee on themselves. He gives you attitude whenever you ask him to do something. I had 2 patients with Q4hr. vitals and at 0015 he was walking by, I told him I needed midnight vitals on such and such and he said, "I have already done midnight vitals, too late." :argue: I almost blew a fuse!!! Later at 4am, I told him I needed vitals on someone and he said why? I just got them at midnight...??????...I just tried to remain calm and told him that first of all, 2 of them are to be taken q4 due to MD orders and the other may be going home this am and I am sure the DR would like to have more recent vitals. Then, he didn't chart my I&O's, had to tell him 4 times!!!. I would rather just not have him... We usually work primary care with no PCA, but sometimes we have them and the nurses take more patients, so when we have him, we are having more patients AND doing primary care anyway because he does nothing. Plus, we are working harder trying to track him down because he doesn't answer his phone and going behind him to make sure he has done his job. Management has been told many times, he has been written up many times, and NOTHING is being done...all I can say is he must have some good pictures on someone!!. Sorry so long, I am just so fed up.:angryfire

[pagandeva2000, LPN]

Not surprized. And if your hospital or their position is unionized, then, I am even less shocked. It's unfortunate, because the nurse is ultimately responsible for all aspects of patient care, whether an aide is there or not. It may seem like caving in on some levels, but, basically, you might as well act like he is not there, since sometimes, you work without PCAs. Document what was done and not done, and when a golden opportunity comes, present it, or present it to the powers that be say, weekly. It seems that management tried to deal with it, since he was written up many times. It sounds more and more that he is in a strong union that backs up his behavior as well as help him retain his job. Really sad...

[oramar]

You know you run into this everywhere. That is why PCAs that do their jobs are a treasure. It really is a managment problem. It also happens at NON UNION institutions all the time. Why, because managment is more interested in checking off a warm body in a slot than performance. They only thing you can do it to keep shooting it back to them till they take action.

[pink85]

This happens a lot where I work. I use to get so aggravated! I would get so behind on my work waiting on them to do their job! So... I had to choose to not be angry and have an attitude all the time and not be behind on my work which means I go about my job as if there is no PCA. I depend on them to get my scheduled vitals and that is it. It is very unfortunate but this way I can plan my day and I know my patients will be taken care of with nothing missed. I would get so aggravated when it would be 1600 and my patients had not had linens changed or a bath. It is more work for me to do it on my own but it has saved my sanity. It is almost funny to hear my patients comment on things like, "I usually don't get my linens changed before breakdfast."., or " I usually don't have anyone help me get cleaned up before lunch." I like to go in and get my job done first thing because you never know what the day holds and I never know if our PCA's are going to 'feel like' doing it or not. I should not have to ask a PCA to change linens or bathe a patient. We have only 2 good PCA's on our unit and one told me that she considers it an insult if she has to be asked to do those things because that is part of her job and she should not have to be asked. I lover her!:loveya:

[j_b_221]

Thanks, for the replies! It makes me feel a little better to know I'm not the only one going through this. In a way though it is sad to know there are so many uncaring people working in a caring field. By, the way, we don't have a union.

[*ac*]

This happens a lot where I work. I use to get so aggravated! I would get so behind on my work waiting on them to do their job! So... I had to choose to not be angry and have an attitude all the time and not be behind on my work which means I go about my job as if there is no PCA. I depend on them to get my scheduled vitals and that is it. It is very unfortunate but this way I can plan my day and I know my patients will be taken care of with nothing missed. I would get so aggravated when it would be 1600 and my patients had not had linens changed or a bath. It is more work for me to do it on my own but it has saved my sanity. It is almost funny to hear my patients comment on things like, "I usually don't get my linens changed before breakdfast."., or " I usually don't have anyone help me get cleaned up before lunch." I like to go in and get my job done first thing because you never know what the day holds and I never know if our PCA's are going to 'feel like' doing it or not. I should not have to ask a PCA to change linens or bathe a patient. We have only 2 good PCA's on our unit and one told me that she considers it an insult if she has to be asked to do those things because that is part of her job and she should not have to be asked. I lover her!:loveya:

I agree with this idea a hundred percent, but I just don't have time to change beds and bathe pts. I do change beds that really need it (when the accident happens, for example), but I truly don't have time to do it routinely. I have often said it would be better to just have less patients and no assistants.

[pink85]

I totally agree! I would much rather have less patients and do it all myself! I know I can count on me!:wink2:

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

I totally agree! I would much rather have less patients and do it all myself! I know I can count on me!:wink2:

Exactly. Cut down my patient load, and I'll be happy to do it all myself. If I have one of the less than stellar CNAs, I do it all myself anyway.

As far as your specific problem, I agree, just keep documenting and reporting. Leave a paper trail. Sometimes it takes time to get rid of someone who isn't pulling their own weight.

[Liddle Noodnik]

he must have some good pictures on someone!!. Sorry so long, I am just so fed up.:angryfire

Sounds like it!

grrr I hate that. There aren't that many like that but the few that there are ...

ARGH...

[yousoldtheworld]

Ugh, I have worked with people like that.

I don't understand why people with attitudes like that, who clearly hate CNA work would do it! It's not like it's a prestigious position with high pay. I would not be doing this if I didn't LOVE my job and truly care about taking care of my patients.

I can imagine how stressful having a CNA like that is for nurses - working with one is stressful for ME. At my last job, I worked with someone who did no bedchecks (literally. She would only change people when she had to get them dressed, and even then, she never got up the number she was supposed to), who rarely actually took her vitals but instead made them up or just charted nothing, and who often hid in linen/laundry rooms, texting or talking on the phone.

On nights, we only had one nurse for 48 patients, and 12 patients per aide. I am not about to let that work fall on the nurse who is already running her legs off, so I ended up having to check and change her 12 patients, as well, pretty much every night. It's not fair to me to do double the work for the same pay as someone who does nothing, but I'm not about to let those patients sit there wet all night, either. Many complaints had been made about her, but nothing had been done when I left there 3 months ago. I suspect it has something to do with the fact that she is friends with the DON outside of work. Her attitude was TERRIBLE - the nurse would ask her to do things and she would literally give a crappy look, walk into the room she was supposed to be doing something in, and STAND. I saw her do this myself on many occasions. Things like that are the main reason I left that job.

I'm sorry you're dealing with that! It's people like that who give us CNAs a bad rep.

[Virgo_RN, BSN, RN]

I actually feel kind of sorry for CNAs that have been CNAs forever and a day, their bodies are falling apart because of all the pushing, pulling, bending, and lifting, and they can't keep up with the pace anymore, but they keep coming to work because they have to pay the bills just like the rest of us. They have no other skill sets from which to draw in order to get some kind of desk job, nobody will hire them because of their age, plus we live in a college town and in this depressed economy, competition for even minimum wage jobs is fierce. Aides like that, I give a certain amount of respect to, as they've been at it for a long, long time, and I myself come from working class roots and know what it is to be trapped in a job at the end of one's productive years, having never done even half the things you wanted to do because you were too busy working to support your family.

On the other hand, it makes my job harder when I have one of these folks as my aide. When I 'm running my butt off with busy patients, half the stuff I'm doing most of the time is stuff the aide could do. But as long as they are steady workers and do some very basic stuff that I can count on, like routine vitals, meal trays, and I&Os, then I can deal with it. I have a lot less tolerance for the aides who are younger, stronger, and I know darn well are capable of running their butts off just like I am. I expect more from them, and they are the ones who often disappoint.