The stressed out life of a CNA

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The stressed out life of a nursing assistant | delmarvanow.com | The Daily Times

This morning I got a call from a supervisor of a nursing facility. This supervisor was beyond frustration. Stressed, disappointed and between a rock and a hard place. The supervisor had three nursing assistants call out of work for the day shift on a Saturday. Unfortunately, more people call off work on the weekends than on weekdays.

We see this scenario often. Nursing assistants take a six-week or six-month course (depending on the program) learning how to care for patients, take their vitals, bathe them, assist in feeding, assist in walking and mobility, respond to call bells when patients have needs. They are on the go all of the time. When they go through training, when they research the field of nursing assistant, when they decide they would like to work with patients, they should know that this is a difficult, fast-paced, and often thankless job. They provide a majority of the direct patient care. They probably have more interaction with each patient than others in their facility. So why do they call off?

Many nursing assistants are professionals, showing up when scheduled with smiles on their faces ready to help and serve their patients. Many don't realize how much emotional strength it takes to be a good nursing assistant. They see patients die. Patients that they become attached to and care for pass away or move on to another facility. They are responsible for intimate care of the elderly and infirm. Some are very reliable, always showing up. However, many have not mastered the emotional strength to deal with the work.

We have been hearing of the nursing shortage for quite some time. We need to look also at the nursing assistant shortage. When I go into a facility, I can usually tell who is a nurse or a nursing assistant. The nursing assistants look tired. They look worried. Some move slowly. Some have been nursing assistants for over 20 years and their 'get up and go' got up and went out the door.

How can this issue be improved? First of all, I believe that when a person decides to go into this or any field, they should really take a look at what it involves. They need to mirror another nursing assistant for at least a day if not a week to see all that it involves. Secondly, they need to know they are going to see very sick people. Especially in a long-term care facility, the patients are at the end of their lives. They are not reacting to the fact that they are sick or aged well and may not be the pleasant ones they were when they were healthy. They are sad that this is where they are, and the nursing assistant who is with them each day has to be able to deal with this emotional issue.

Another issue is the reliability factor. Many haven't held a job for a long period of time before going into this field. Were they calling off work in their former job? How often did they call off? How well do you know the person you hired?

What is the answer? I believe there are several. First: proper training. Not just a six-week course showing them how to do the job. There should be ongoing training in how to deal with stresses in their job, both at work and at home.

When they call off, instead of ignoring them, or reprimanding them, find out why they called off. Many won't tell you. Get them talking. Find out if it is the schedule is too tough. Find out if it was the fact that yesterday they had so many patients and they are exhausted. Find out if it's outside issues.

Schedule regular training classes for them. Keep them interested in their job. Keep them motivated to do a good job and reward them. The economy is tight. We all are working harder with fewer resources. Don't forget to give these hard-working people incentives to show up to work on time, and each scheduled day. Give them education, training, even if it's one hour monthly of new things to help them deal with their stressful job. Give them opportunities to take care of personal business.

Find out why weekends are hard for them. Did they stay up too late on Friday night? Do they have family or church obligations on the weekends?

Help your nursing assistants be successful. Remember they are going to take care of you, too, someday.

Thank you for pointing this out. The reason CNA's call in a lot is for one, they don't make any money. It is a dead end job because if you want promotion you have to have time and money to go to school for at least a couple of years. Also a lot of CNA's go into the field thinking that they are actually going to take care of the elderly or the sick. They start work and find out that they don't really have very much time to take good care of the residents, they are short staffed half of the time anyway because the less money spent means a bonus for the administrator, they are constantly on the go while everyone else in the building is basically sitting down and it gets to feel like your soul purpose for being there is to wipe s.... The way these jobs are set up need to change. For one thing any other job that requires you to work with human bodily waist pays quite well and usually offers a good benifit package. Not cna jobs however. These jobs are probably the closest thing to slave labor there is in America. Not only this CNA's have to put up with the emotional problems of the nurses when they decide they are having a bad day and need to take it out on someone. It is a cr.. job that some are stuck into. Most facilities will not even celebrate the CNA holiday but, they will for the nurses. That is like a slap in the face when the CNA's are doing the majority of the one on one care of the residents.

Nursing assistants do have a full work load and are under appreciated and underpaid. The job requires a lot of stress on thier bodies and thier spirit. Extra efforts to keep CNA's showing up on time and motivated is a good idea and beneficial. Incenatives and educational oppertunities may play a role in the decision for a CNA to stay on board or jump ship. Remember, nurses are part of a medical team and nursing assisstants play an important role in patient care. Be a team player and contribute to increasing the morale of the workplace and provide support and encouragement to those who are carrying the load.

Nursing assistants are underpaid and under appriciated. By providing incenatives and educational oppertunities, perhaps more CNA's would find the field worthwhile. It may be the leading factor if an aide decides to stay aboard or jump ship. Remember, nurses are part of a medical team and CNA's play a key role as the patients primary caregiver. They are the eyes and ears for the nurse when the nurse is unavailable. They need reminded that thier job is important and that they are appriciated.

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Originally Posted by cc student

Nursing assistants are underpaid and under appriciated. By providing incenatives and educational oppertunities, perhaps more CNA's would find the field worthwhile. It may be the leading factor if an aide decides to stay aboard or jump ship. Remember, nurses are part of a medical team and CNA's play a key role as the patients primary caregiver. They are the eyes and ears for the nurse when the nurse is unavailable. They need reminded that thier job is important and that they are appriciated.

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Oh, I agree with you! I have worked with many good CNA's, with a few 'slugs' thrown in for a balance.

In the job I currently have - we use unlicensed assitive personelle also known as direct care staff to provide care to our consumers. Some of them are very good but others are a nightmare. Constantly on their phones texting and talking, Not performing their duties, infighting among eachother. Not following Dr.s orders, calling off calling sick etc.....

When they are hired they are told it's a minimum wage job working under stressful and challanging conditions. The wages and workload are not downplayed so when someonr accepts the job they know full well what it entails. If you don't like the job quit - it's that simple. I have gone to bat for good staff to get them perks and raises but when one of my clients goes into seizures because she's dehydrated or another get a whopping UTI because the staff won't follow simple hygiene instructions then they need to go. Yesturday I had to unclog a toilet in one of my facilities because the house staff refused to do it. (Now that's full service nursing) When I try to instruct them they say "I don't get paid enough to do that" My inclination is to tell them "Don't let the door hit you in the ass on the way out." but I am a professional
so I will soldier on.

Anyway minimum wage here is $8.00 an hour and I know that when you pay bananas you get monkeys but sheesh......

Peace

Hppy

Hppy, I have told the staff, 'You see ME doing the stuff, don't you?' As for unclogging toilets, I am not a plumber, but I am sure they'd do it at their own house for crisesakes!

Hey in some area's CNA's actually make more then paramedics who work private ambulance companies. They certainly don't have the same level of liabilty and they don't have to work 24 hour shifts. Still, being a CNA is not a "career" oriented line of work. It "can" be an intro to health care for some, but if they use good judgement then they will see it is NOT the place to spend a lifetime of employment. Thats an opinion of course...

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Originally Posted by trimedic37

Hey in some area's CNA's actually make more then paramedics who work private ambulance companies. They certainly don't have the same level of liabilty and they don't have to work 24 hour shifts. Still, being a CNA is not a "career" oriented line of work. It "can" be an intro to health care for some, but if they use good judgement then they will see it is NOT the place to spend a lifetime of employment. Thats an opinion of course...

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I get your opinion, emt's make shit and cna's make shit. Atleast up in MASS they do. Now to call a cna's job not a "career" well I would agree if it was the run of the mill nursing home where grandma and grandpa need help getting there clothes on, fine. In a hostipal cna's do alot more. That's more of a career, some people arent blessed with the sliver spoon (like me) to go to nursing school. Say what you want nursing school is expensive. I understand theres loans,grants,pell grants all sorts of goverment money out there to get to nursing school. Im a diffrent color and come from a middle class family. It's the truth. To say cna isnt a "career" you mite as well say emt isnt a "career" just a glorified taxi driver. So where does that leave me? Id be a nurse by now if I had the money to go to school.

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Originally Posted by EMTHOUSE

Id be a nurse by now if I had the money to go to school.

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True education of any kind is expensive but so worth the investment. My dad used to say that education is the only thing no one can ever take away from you is education. When I went to nusring school I did it at a community college where the tuition was quite reasonable. Books were expensive but there are ways to find affordable texts as well.

Bottom line of you want to be an RN stick to your dream. Look for alternatives that make it affordable. But getting your RN right now isn't the shoe in to a better career that it used to be. In the current economy many new grads are taking up to two years to land their forst job and wages in general are virtually guaranteed to decrease as health care reform goes into action. (if it's not repealed we'll all be making less than $20.00 and hour when the govt takes over our paychecks).

Peace

Hppy

Hey, I did the LPN to RN route, with 2 years of being a CNA before LPN school. Now it is MANDATORY that one get the ol' CNA before one gets into the first semester of Clinical out my way.

Think of it this way: you are learning and earning. Hppy is right; there will be a way to get your RN, TRUST me!

You still have to pay thousands of dollars for a promotion if you are a CNA. Some of us are getting older and in some places CNA wages are not high enough to even think about going to school plus the lack of benefits. I think what needs to be done is CNAs should all have the ability for an apprenticeship and should not have to pay thousands of dollars for schooling just for a job promotion. Even in a sewage plant the workers have an ability for promotion. I think a lot of what would fix the CNA shortage or the shortage of quality CNAs would be for one, get the nurses out from behind the nurses station. A medical secretary can answer phone calls and go get the nurse if they are needed on the phone. Charting should be done in the halls and believe me they do not have as much as some would like to act like they do. i have worked in hospitals and nursing homes. From what I have experienced hospital nurses are far more busy. Also the nurses need to quit creatively looking to find things for CNAs to do when they are already busy. Remember it is not an abomination when a CNA sits down. They are tired. Another thing i have experienced as I have never seen as many bad backs, knees, etc.... than when CNAs ask nurses for help. LOL Also remember CNAs are not your servants. That is a big one. We are not there to keep nurses from having to get up. Let us forget, picking up a phone is not hard and calling a doctor or pharmacy is not back breaking work and takes a few minutes so please do not use that against a CNA that sees you as lazy. With that being said, I do thank all the nurses out there who do participate in the care fo patients and work as a team with the CNAs instead of sitting and letting the CNAs do most of the work. They are very appreciated and cherished.

Thank you for your forum post. I greatly appreciate your insights and what you are talking about. I have been in your shoes before. It is very stressful when staff members are out. I remember when we were suppose to have five staff members on our floor; we only had two for the long morning and a third came at 12:00 pm. It was a very long and hard morning. I just hoped that nothing would happen on the floor when I worked that day and nothing did happen. Everything went very smooth. My co-worker and I worked out a plan and we decided since there were two of us that I would serve the meals and she would get the coffee. I would also check the door to make sure that nobody walked out of the the building. As long as you work out a plan, everything should be OK and take it easy as well. Good luck to you. Purplespider, CNA

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Originally Posted by duaneconnell

Thank you for your forum post. I greatly appreciate your insights and what you are talking about. I have been in your shoes before. It is very stressful when staff members are out. I remember when we were suppose to have five staff members on our floor; we only had two for the long morning and a third came at 12:00 pm. It was a very long and hard morning. I just hoped that nothing would happen on the floor when I worked that day and nothing did happen. Everything went very smooth. My co-worker and I worked out a plan and we decided since there were two of us that I would serve the meals and she would get the coffee. I would also check the door to make sure that nobody walked out of the the building. As long as you work out a plan, everything should be OK and take it easy as well. Good luck to you. Purplespider, CNA

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I think that it is wise that nursing students get their CNA; even before they start nursing rotations for several reasons. It gets their feet wet into the nursing field. It gets them use to the nursing skills in which they will need to learn. It also helps them overall understand the basic nursing care which brings a good foundation for all nursing care. Getting the CNA is also a good idea for job prospects as well while you are in nursing school. If the managers see that you have a CNA, then you are credible in your job and can get one. Overall, having your CNA is a good idea.

All of nursing education is getting more complex and broader in nature; including the role of a CNA. In the state where I live, I have to fill out a questionaire sheet whenever I renew my certificate license for the CNA and it wants to show how many nursing hours that I worked during the year and what were my duties. I also know that certain nursing programs have to have documentation that you completed some course work before you come to the nursing school; especially in doing some online course material. CNA's work has become more diverse over the years. CNA's do have options for advancement and get higher nursing title's like LPN/LVN or RN. My good friend from nursing school was a CNA in high school and when I met her, she wanted to get into higher status in the nursing profession; so that is why she was going to get her BSN (RN) degree and possibly her masters in the future. So, being a CNA is a gift in that you learn the basic ideas and things of nursing and you can advance upward from there.

I really think that becoming a CNA is a great idea for several reasons. It allows you to take the first step and get the basic care needs of nursing over and take the certification test. When students take the CNA portion first, it is like the first piece of the puzzle has been solved and more pieces are building to formulate a well-rounded nurse. I think that employers want employees to become more and more certified and licensed with credentials because it is a changing world and all employees need to have more credentials in order to compete with other employees. Nursing is constantly changing and nursing students are becoming more and more CNA's while they are in school so they can work in the nursing field right away and get the exposure that they need. I would say that I am thankful that nursing students are able to become CNA's.

I could definitely tell from the rehab center where my mom was for about 44 days that CNA's today are very stressed out. I was stressed out when I worked as a CNA myself for years, but now I think that the work load is far harder. There are so many things to do and so many directions to go into these days. Plus, CNA's can advance and become more things on the job now. I think that the things in order to make the work load more manageable are:
1. Work on tasks that need to be worked on first and prioritize them.
2. Have good relations and communication with your boss.
3. Understand what your job details are and do it.
4. Keep in mind of all options.

I hope this helps.

I think that it is wise to have your CNA before you take the LPN course work because of these reasons:

1. It helps to get your foot in the door into the healthcare field.
2. It allows you to have that medical foundation that will flourish into more abundant nursing care.
I think that more and more nursing programs should require the students to have their CNA and I am so thankful that you got the chance to have yours in order to become an LPN.
I wish you the best.

These are all great ideas and true statements about CNA's. I have been a CNA for about 17 years now. I have worked in long-term care facility and in the schools. I have seen so many changes that are happening all around and everywhere in the medical field. I did not have any trouble working on the weekends, except just getting out of bed if I stayed up too late. I usually had the hardest time at the end of the day when I just felt drained physically, mentally, and emotionally. All of that stress of the day took a toll on me and I felt just rung out. That is why being a CNA is so stressful because I try my hardest to do a good job and be the best that I can be, but at the end of the day I am so tired that I have to close my eyes sometimes before I can even drive home. Being a CNA is a great reward; the only thing that I have to remember going forward is to pace myself better during the day so that I am not so tired when I go home.

I really think that is great to have the CNA out of the way for several reasons:

1. You get the healthcare experience that you need along with a certification that you also need in the present and future.
2. Having your CNA helps in the general healthcare aspect because it is a stepping stone to a lot of things.
3. It helps to know what the basic level of care is and have that mastered before being in advanced level of nursing care.

I wish you the best.

I totally understand what you mean. There are so many things that need to be accomplished on the unit each and every day of the week. You have to make sure that the patients have enough food, water, and are well dressed and clean. You have to make sure that the patient's needs are met on a regular basis; including spiritual needs as well. You also must make sure that the nurse's aide meets all current standards as well. It is a rewarding career, but you must take your breaks. It can be a reduced stress career life as long as you take care of yourself.

I totally understand that. I have been stressed out as a CNA too since I am one. I think that it is very important to do these things when you are working as a CNA:

1. Pace yourself.

2. Understand all that you need to do each and everyday.

3. Be Flexible in what you need to do.

4. Always have a positive outlook.

You will do just fine. Good luck to you.

I know exactly what you mean for several reasons:

1. I am currently working as a CNA and an activity aide in the memory care unit and assisted living unit at the assisted living facility.
2 I feel the stress when I am giving direct care and activity care as well when the client is having trouble or the activity is not going the way that it should go.
3. I feel pressured when things that I need to do pile on me every day.

I have learned to prioritize my list so that I do the important things first.

I totally understand. I am working part time as a CNA and as an activity aide and I am totally stressed out. I think that the real aspect that stresses me out is the fact that I have to hurry in every aspect; including treatments and ADL work. I wish that I did not have to do that, but time is of the essence and I have to make things count. I am trying though the slow down and do things one at a time.