Let The CNA'S Travel Too

[Ladyoftherose]

Why don't the CNA'S get to do the traveling thing ?
We are just as important part of the Nursing Staff as the RN's,LVN's ,LPN's are and we deserve the right to travel too and to get the same benefits as the others do.
We should be able to travel to the hospitals , nursing homes, and other places where we are needed at too.
And we should get the free housing and the rental car and other things that the RN's and the others get too .
I think that if all the contractors would look at there contracts and see that the Nurses Aides makes better choices they would be fighting to get us to sign with them instead of the RN's and other nurses, not to mention we would be alot more able to help where the help is needed at .
So if someone out there thinks that this is wrong then I apoloize for it but I am tired of being turned down because I am not AN RN or AN LVN or AN LPN .
When I know how to do just as much as they do , I know how to give shots and put in IV's and other things that they do ..... And NO I don't get the pay but we should get the right to Travel to other States to work too.
Again I apoloize to anyone who might be getting a little upset but that is how I feel and I would almost be willing to bet that there is alot of the other CNA's that feel the same way I feel about it too.
So this is what I say .
CNA Will TRAVEL .

[cassioo]

I don't think it's wrong but in my area of the country there isn't the shortage of CNA's as there is of nurses. It's a supply and demand thing they don't use many nurses around here either just every now and then.

Also knowing how to give a shot are start an IV is not the same as knowing the medications and reactions, following a carepath, care plan whatever it's called and having the knowledge base. Yes CNA's are part of the team but are you saying nurses aren't needed because you can do everything as a CNA? I've taught 12 yr olds to give their own shots so should they be allowed to do work and take care of patients?

[nursinghumor]

CNA's don't travel for the obvious reason. It's very expensive to hire travel nurses, pay their housing, benefits, traveling expenses, etc.

Hospitals will not pay that kind of money unless they have to. If they can hire nursing assistants locally, they'll do that. For most facilities there are plenty to go around.

If you go to some of the Nursing Assistant websites, there is a turnover rate of up to 100% per year in some facilities.

More like this . . http://www.nursefriendly.com/CNA

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Meaning that CNAs are constantly changing jobs, moving around and getting hired left and right. There isn't the same shortage as there is for nurses.

It does mean that you can go anywhere and find work, just like nurses. You'll need more education and a license to get the same perks we do.

And sorry, you need a license to do what we do. We can do your work, but you cannot do ours.

I'm not above changing a soiled resident or taking a little old lady to the bathroom. I do help out when time allows.

It is above you to pass medications or do tasks we have to have a license for.

Like nurses, if you didn't show up one day, everything would probably grind to a halt. You can't run a hospital/nursing home without nurses or nursing assistants.

Hope that is helpful to you.

Andrew Lopez, RN
Nursing Associations, Degree Programs Online, Jokes, Schools, Scrubs & More
http://www.4nursing.com

[Ladyoftherose]

But I have done the RN's and LVN's jobs at the hospital and the nursing homes because they are too lazy to do it ....
There was one place where they would go and get the medicines and give it to the aides that worked there and then they would do that all night long .... So please don't tell me that the CNA'S don't deserve the same respect as yaw'll do because thats not true .... we do twice as much if not more than yaw'll do and we see and hear more than yaw'll do so why not pay us just about the same ..... I have seen on my computer all across the United States OF America that there is a shortage of Nurses Aides as well as Nurses .... and if there is a big shortage on nurses like they say there is then why is the United States going to Canada and trying to hire their nurses from there for .... And too The United States doesn't pay what Canada pays there nurses or Nurses Aides either ..... And I don't think that is why they get many if any from there .
So don't get me started on something that I have been doing for over 25 years now and tell me what the nurses are suppose to do but don't . I have seen it everywhere I go and its not getting any better either .
There are some RN's and LVN's in Texas that are so lazy that they have the aides do there work for them because they would much rather smoke their cigerattes and talk about whos with who are who is going to go out with who , when that shouldn't have anything to do with the job at that point and time .
Its not that its that expenive its just they that are affraid that we might do a better job than some that they have hired to do that job .
I will say this and then leave this is suppose to be the land of freedom and better way of living but it isn't because we get the nasty jobs and make less money while there are those that just don't do anything and make good money and they are Nurses and I don't think that they deserve to be nurses either .
Mad In Texas

[cassioo]

If RN's and LVN's are giving medications to the NA's to pass then they should be reported to the supervisor where you work and if nothing is done there then it should be taken to the state board since that is not legal.

NA's do work hard but as with those lazy nurses you cite there are also lazy NA's. They are in every profession for the most part the nurses I work with work hard but there are a few bad apples but same with the NA's

The Canadian (and other foreign nurses) do come here to work because there is a shortage. That's the same reason nurses get paid bonuses to go places. There was a new hospital opened here where I lived and they offered a good bonus but the other hospital in town offered a bigger bonus to staff that would stay and not move to the new place. Some stayed and some went and everyone is short.

I'm sure as a NA for 20+ years you do have lots to offer but even at that you shouldn't be doing anything outside your scope of practice because you could go to jail for that too....ever hear of practicing without a liscense? That's why nurses do have a liscense. There are things nurses can do under their liscense and everystate is different in what they can do. Ever hear it's lonely at the top? In every business those top dogs make the policies, invent the product, set the rules and make the most money the ones that make the least get to do the work. You don't think Dave Thomas was flipping burgers when he died but he sure made more then those people that do. He was at the top of the pecking order. If you want to move up and get the perks you have to take matters into your own hands and get more education so you can then give the orders or take that travel job where the money is.

[MikePerkins]

dont mean to come off in a negative manor, but what your saying is outragous. You really should quite working at the place your at because what your doing is highly illegal. Those nurses would loose thier liscenses in about .5 seconds for what they are doing. Also I cant visualize to many nursing homes where iv starts are the norm. But thier is an exception to every rule. In either case by law no hospital would higher a cna to perform iv starts, or give medications because that hospital would loose the ability to have patients. Its EXTREMLY illigal. Same as hospitals dont higher associates degree or bachaller degree nurses to prescribe medications. We have a working knowledge of medications, but by law we cant give them because we know a patient needs them without a doctors authority.

Also the education involved in becoming a nurse and a cna is on a whole other level. I know very few CNA that know when a patient is going into flash pulmenary edmea, or starting to have cardiac complications or how to work a code. Because a CNA is not taught to, because a CNA is not expected to, nor should they ever need to. Hospitals that pay for travel nurses pay top dollar to these institutions because a well trained nurse is extremly hard to find in some areas, and highly needed. An experienced CNA is a vital nessisity, but the difference between a highly skilled Nurse and CNA is worlds apart. as was stated before, I routinly do bed changes as a nurse, and assist the cna on the floor. I would never ask a cna to push cardizem iv or even lasix because a cna has no working knowledge of these medications, and its also illegal.

also the above poster is correct. I worked as a cna for about 5 years, and decided it was time to make a change. Im now a registered nurse on a telemetry floor, and I know first hand the complete difference in roles, difficulty and training involved in becoming a compitent nurse. The nurses you work with are non of those things obviously, and its sad your viewpoint on what you can and cannot do is influenced by such fools.

[Ladyoftherose]

Listen I have reported it to the Director of Nursing and she said that it was common ..... I have even called the state here and they said that some RN's and LVN's do give there medicines to the AIDES to give to the patients and its not against the law and it does take place and there is nothing that can be done about it .So its not a matter of them loosing there liecense but a matter of them having the right to ****take to the cna's as what to do and what not to do .... I have did my checking on all that has taken place at the hospital and they said that it was ok and that all I needed to do was to go down and get my medication aide certification and that I could give medicines then.
So everyone needs to start listening to what I am telling because I know what went on at Stephens Memorail Hospital in Breckenridge,Texas.
I am not down on all the Nurses but just on some where I work at .
Here is the state of Texas its legal to get the aides to do cath, pass medicines at the hospitals and the nursing homes and to put in IV's as well.
I went to school to become a certified nurses aide and in school they taught us how to do all those things .
I agree with you on going back and getting my nurses liecense too and I plan on it but I need to get out there and earn the money to go back on you see. Because I don't qualifiy for financal aid or any grants or loans so I have to work to go back .
Mad In Texas

[BigRedNurse]

Dear MAD; I still cannot believe that any institution of learning would instruct a CNA to insert IV's. Period. I have, however, worked with CNA's who have the ability to pass meds, contingent on their licensure. Sorry, Rose, that you don't get paid as I do. I went back to school and graduated at 46 with my ADN. I appreciate working alongside a good CNA more than you know. And I agree that a good CNA is irreplaceable. HOWEVER, if you want my hourly wage, you have to earn it. Start with your education. If you really want a degree, there are ways to get the government to help pay for it. Did your parents attend college? If not, then you may be eligible for a Pell Grant, and grants do NOT have to be repaid. And a little constructive criticism; maybe work on your tone of voice; you sound very angry, and that won't get you anywhere in an interview. I wish you luck. Look inside yourself and see if nursing is, indeed, for you. It's not all it's cracked up to be. Then, if you decide to go for it, the world is your oyster. I wish you the best.

[Orly]

That's just ridiculous. Yes, aides do a lot of hard work. I did more work than the nurses where I worked. All it did was inspire me to want to go back to school and get an education. However, aides are not entitled to the wages and benefits that nurses receive. Aides should NOT be doing a nurse's job. When I worked the night shift in a certain facility, the nurse on my floor was so lazy that she would always drag the aides along to help her do her job. She would make me assist her with straight caths (and by that I mean handling the sterile contents and helping to insert it), etc.

The last straw was when I walked in on her verbally abusing a resident who had fallen out of bed by screaming and swearing at her. I reported her but of course nothing came of it. So I quit my job. An education does not always mean a nurse will have integrity, but it certainly entitles them to more money and benefits. It's the bad apples that should inspire aides to become caring, compassionate, and ethical nurses.

Edit: LadyRose, if you do not qualify for grants or loans then look into Educational Opportunity Centers in your area. They are free to income elligible people. Even if you are not income elligible they oftentimes will bend the rules if you explain your circumstances. It's worth looking into. I assume that most of them offer at the very least offer an LPN course. After that it would not be difficult to use your LPN income to perhaps take RN courses at a local community college. They're usually very inexpensive whether you pay by the course or on a full-time basis.

[HeyFraydo]

Actually I have seen several Travel CNA positions although it is more rare. My wife is a CNA and Travels with me. She usually gets a per diem job or perm job in the same hospital. Good Caring CNA's are so valuable for pt. care yet it is a shame that so many are underpaid for the work that they do. It truely gives you insight into what are the values of our healthcare system that in many places the CNA who has the most contact with patients make bearly better than minimum wage. Not all CNA's are caring just like there are uncaring nurses but the CNAs that are caring and work under such poor staffing conditions and poor pay I applaud for there service to the suffering.

CJ Jones RN

www.TravelNurseToolbox.com