Unruly CNAs

Ruby Vee, BSN · May 23, 2017

Of course God forbid that the aides should actually do their work.
Do you see any possibility that OP is not in the wrong? That the aides really are rude and lazy?

I was willing to give the OP the benefit of the doubt until his/her second post. The second post highlighted very clearly why the OP is having difficulties getting along with his/her colleagues.

/username, BSN, RN · May 23, 2017

And like a gentle autumn wind, OP fades into the night, not to be seen again.

wrst · May 23, 2017

How dare you judge me for expressing my experiences with a difficult group of people. Maybe I should of labeled my article "dealing opposition on an assignment", maybe that would have better suited you, jerk!! I noticed you are some type of "All Nurses" troll and comment on on almost every single article. Maybe you should take a tip from you own advice and re-evaluate your own character. I have the upmost respect for "good" CNAs who actually "aide" and not make my job more difficult.

Now we know.

KelRN215, BSN, RN · May 25, 2017

Why did you let them sleep, not empty Foley's, not hide the tympanic thermometer, do your own transporting while these lazy, good for nothings got paid to not work? Are you out of your mind?
You and all the other nurses who let them get away with this?
Have you ever heard of coaching? Setting rules? Write-ups? Team meetings? How do you ever
expect things to change for the better when you let people walk all over you and, by extension,
maltreat the patients? (as in VS hours late, not turning and cleaning the patients) In case you can't tell, this makes me very angry.

I wasn't their boss. When we complained to our manager or the nurses who were in charge of the CNAs, they did nothing. As I stated in my original post, we were told that this was the "culture" and we couldn't change it. This was a floor with a high nursing turnover so some of the career CNAs were around way longer than most of the nurses.

As the RN caring for the patient, anything delegated to the CNA is still ultimately my responsibility and I chose to ensure that my patients were taken care of. Now I choose to work in areas that do not employ CNAs.

penlite28 · May 25, 2017

Do you and NedRN share the same crystal ball? You two are reading too deeply into the post. I am the only one who can give insight on the hostile environment that I'm currently working in. And to call the above named passively aggressive, toned comment, constructive criticism is delusional. I must admit, maybe I should have clarified that the CNAs that I personally work with are rude and lazy and not the entire staff of them. I wasn't asking anyone to pass judgment on people they DON'T KNOW. As a new traveler, I was just curious how other travelers dealt with opposition/resistance on their assignments.

penlite28 · May 25, 2017

No, I'm still here..

fawnmarie, ASN · May 25, 2017

I wasn't their boss. When we complained to our manager or the nurses who were in charge of the CNAs, they did nothing. As I stated in my original post, we were told that this was the "culture" and we couldn't change it. This was a floor with a high nursing turnover so some of the career CNAs were around way longer than most of the nurses.
As the RN caring for the patient, anything delegated to the CNA is still ultimately my responsibility and I chose to ensure that my patients were taken care of. Now I choose to work in areas that do not employ CNAs.

I received the same response at my facility when I complained about lazy CNAs. "That's the culture of this place" or "You know that's just the way it is around here" or "They don't have to do anything, because they are related to so-and-so." Occasionally, a new nurse would come along who was determined to change the culture. These nurses would never make it off their probationary period. It was infuriating. I would rather work in facilities that do not use CNAs.

Ruby Vee, BSN · May 26, 2017

Do you and NedRN share the same crystal ball? You two are reading too deeply into the post. I am the only one who can give insight on the hostile environment that I'm currently working in. And to call the above named passively aggressive, toned comment, constructive criticism is delusional. I must admit, maybe I should have clarified that the CNAs that I personally work with are rude and lazy and not the entire staff of them. I wasn't asking anyone to pass judgment on people they DON'T KNOW. As a new traveler, I was just curious how other travelers dealt with opposition/resistance on their assignments.

The rude, hostile tone of your second and subsequent posts gives us all real insight as to why you could possibly be having difficulty getting along with colleagues. Most people try treating our colleagues well, asking their opinions on matters for which they can be expected to have a legitimate opinion, and perhaps following some of the good suggestions you've already received. We don't have to known the CNAs in question; your character is written all over your posts.

sideshowstarlet, BSN, RN · May 28, 2017

As someone who worked at a SNF where management tolerated rude and lazy aides who were neglectful and, in some cases, verbally abusive to residents, I sympathize with OP's dilemma. It was hard enough putting in my two weeks notice (documenting behaviors- including a very interesting false accusation of racism- all the way, as well as doing my actual job caring for the residents and fulfilling LTC's rather ridiculous documentation requirements for our residents). Since this assignment has a definite end, I'd stay stick it out while writing up all behaviors that affected patient care (for example, having an attitude wouldn't but not doing their job or verbally abusing patients would). One copy for you and one for your "aide," and one for your "Manager." Document to cya and protect your license. Then, when you finish your assignment, shake the dust of that place off your feet and go work on a unit without an aide and has staffing that allows for total RN care. Because if the aides aren't doing their job, aren't your patients getting total rn care, anyway? You owe it to yourself and your license to work a unit that staffs appropriately for this.

Skippingtowork · May 28, 2017

I'm working on passing my CNA stuff and I'm also taking pre-nursing classes but as of this comment I'm 28 and former military. I'm quite aware of the responsibilities RNs have vs CNAs and if it was me in this position, I'd make a phone call to the BON about it because if CNAs give you attitude, that could jeopardize the safety of the patient. Here in NV, CNAs are monitored by our BON, don't know what it's like in your state but see what the BON says. Maybe they could do a little temporary license suspensure to get the CNAs attention and report them to their offices to remind them of where they stand. Off-hours, as a CNA or RN, I don't know anyone I work with and anything that happens to the patients is not my responsibility or under my care but when I'm on-duty, it's life or death between CNA/NURSE and the patient. Is this CNA capable of glaring at the grim reaper and say,"Not today my friend" because we all know RNs have less contact with the patients than CNAs? I'd report to the BON about it. If management doesn't do anything about it, report to the BON about them. This is an inhibitor in safety practice. "failure to communicate"

It's quite clear that you are not yet licensed or a CNA. Report to the BON and say what? Just like you are advocating to report a CNA to the BON, that CNA can report the RN to the BON and the RN has much more to lose. It takes thousands of dollars to defend yourself, even when you've done nothing wrong. That same CNA has the power to report the organization to regulatory agencies, causing all sorts of chaos. A CNA giving attitude" has never jeopardized patient safety. The focus should remain on whether they are doing the job for which they were hired. If not, there are management remedies for that. Proper hiring and training, plus respectful relationships, goes much further to address the concerns. There may be a hands-off attitude from the nurse manager that is fostering the behaviors.

Skippingtowork · May 28, 2017

Be happy you have aides. My suspicion is they all have friends. Thus their rudeness is your inability to relate, communicate, and manage effectively. Perhaps you think you know everything with 2 years of experience yourself. If you instead think 'what could I have done differently, or how I can communicate better, versus what's wrong with these people', you will have fewer of these problems. It is not easy, but far, far easier to change your own behavior than others. If you model best practices and behaviors, others around you will respond positively.

NedRN, even terrible people have friends, because their friends may be like them or they are not really friends, just scared of that person. Wolves run in packs. How do you presume that they have friends? How do you come to the conclusion that OP has problems communicating, relating and managing effectively? Modeling best practices and behaviors does not necessarily translate into improved behaviors, as evidenced by murders, rapes, thefts, drug dealers and users, inept employees, child abusers, etc. Constructive advice is always based on asking more questions first. While I believe as you do that changing one's behavior might be easier than changing someone else's, this approach may be best demonstrated by management ending the relationship and signing the termination papers. I may have missed something. The OP demonstrated irritation in a subsequent post, but it may come from a place of feeling personally attacked.

NedRN · May 28, 2017

Modeling best practices and behaviors does not necessarily translate into improved behaviors, as evidenced by murders, rapes, thefts, drug dealers and users, inept employees, child abusers, etc.

Exactly what behavior then should nurses model for support staff? I had no idea that CNAs had such extensive criminal records.