I just started my first job as a LTC CNA (two days in) and I almost walked out yesterday, not because of the residents or the demands of the job of any of that. It's just that the staff (mostly the CNAs) are so crude and unprofessional. Most of them spend half of the shift on smoke breaks, cut corners whenever they can with resident care, and sit and text on their phones when they should be working. Also, the girls that were supposed to be "orienting" me basically ignored me the whole time and walked off and left me to stand at the nurse's station to wait from direction from someone, but I was the only person standing there, so then I got yelled at by another CNA for not answering call lights that were going off. I really want to stick this job out because I became a CNA as my first step to becoming an RN (I started pre-nursing classes this week, too). I wanted the clinical experience of being a CNA, and the nursing program here requires it as well.
So, fellow CNAs, does it get any better? Is the work environment like that for anyone else? Any advice?
This behavior is a reflection on the LPN's and RN's that are in charge. There is no need to complain to them, because when a staff of CNA's are sorry, so are the nurses that supervise them. Do yourself a big favor and go to work at a hospital immediately. There are certainly bad CNA's there too but not nearly as many as you will find in LTC. Once you have a new job, go to the Director of Nursing at that LTC facility and tell him/her why you quit, that negligence is prevalent in their facility, and you just cant turn your head to it for a second!
Thanks everybody. I decided today to go talk to the DON, but when I went in she was meeting w/ corporate. If it doesn't change in a few weeks...month at the longest, I'm going to apply at the hospital. I've always wanted to work there anyways. The only thing that makes me hesitate to apply there is that I feel like I'm betraying my DON because she offered me the job right out of the course. But if it keeps up like this it'll make it that much easier to tell her why I'm quitting.
BradleyRN
520 Posts
This behavior is a reflection on the LPN's and RN's that are in charge. There is no need to complain to them, because when a staff of CNA's are sorry, so are the nurses that supervise them. Do yourself a big favor and go to work at a hospital immediately. There are certainly bad CNA's there too but not nearly as many as you will find in LTC. Once you have a new job, go to the Director of Nursing at that LTC facility and tell him/her why you quit, that negligence is prevalent in their facility, and you just cant turn your head to it for a second!