Before becoming a CNA student, I was an underpaid Shift Lead at a fast-food service chain. We didn’t have a general manager. So, I did their job. It prepared me for the fast-paced nature of clinical rotation, but recently, I feel like that past life is coming back to haunt me.

The rest of this is not me honing my maturity, professionalism, or insight because I’m venting, and:

“I don’t like you standing around. Why are you standing around? There’s always something to do; go find it.” - My instructor, today (post-conference)

…

😟

Look, I get this sentiment, and…we’re asked to stand around. Our CNA will help a patient and then tell us to watch their lights. We’re students. For the most part, we’re not helpful. So, I try to do what I’m told.

I have to document away from the patients. I’m a student who doesn’t have access to any charting equipment, so I have to write everything down by hand. Where do I do that? I’m standing out of the way, against the wall, so that staff and patients can walk through easily. I have to report. I’ve written down a copy of the entire assignment every morning because no one answers each other’s call lights. So, I have to go looking across the entire floor for them. I answer every call light, regardless of my assignment, because that’s what my instructor told us we’re supposed to do. I have to stand in line to wash my hands. I have to use the restroom. I need to catch my breath for 2 minutes when it’s not busy. Maybe all of these statements are excuses.

The saying “There is always something to do” drives me nuts. My regional manager from my food-service days telling me to “Scrub the baseboards. They’re dirty“ because “Remember. There’s always something to do!” (By the way, when I left, everything fell apart. The first thing they did was hire a general manager). Is this normal? I don’t know. If it is, I’ll stop complaining about it.

Apparently we’re supposed to check the rooms, even if the call lights aren’t on, now. /s Okay, so I’ll make sure to squeeze that in! It’s not like I’ve been…I don’t know…busy? Was I busy doing my job? Who could’ve known? By the way, I already check in on patients when their lights aren’t on!

I refill the linen carts in my spare time. I dispense an extra paper towel for the person washing their hands next to me because the dispenser sucks, so I want to make their life easier. I don’t say this to boast about how “great” I am. That's gross. I just…I’m feeling exasperated. I truly put my all into this work, even though it’s unpaid, and even though it’s grueling. I’m kind of battle-hardened because I’ve seen a lot of awful things in my life. Patient care, even graphic or scary things, is overall tame for me thus far. It’s still grueling, a lot of the time, but it’s worth it. I know what it’s like to be in a place that’s unimaginable to some. I want to give the best that I can to these patients. So, what more can I do? That’s the question I’m asking myself, when I’m feeling so exhuasted. Do I really need to just work harder? If that’s really the “answer,” I’ll do it, and I’ll figure it out. I’m just sharing my thoughts and feelings, I guess.

By the way, our instructor makes one of us play charge nurse for the rest of the class. Our newest student “charge nurse” declared that we’re ALL taking our 15 minute break at 0945 because we’re supposed to take it before 1000 and so we can be there during the “rush.” The reasoning is logical, until you realize that means 15 students are simultaneously stampeeding into the tiny break room where ALL of the staff are. There’s barely enough room to sit for 15 people. Not to mention, we may be there for the “rush,” but leaving immediately after leaves no support for the CNA afterwards because we’re all gone. Also, I want to take my break when I want. I think people should be able to take their breaks when they want if it’s okay with their CNA. Why? What if we get frustrated to the point we need to step away? There’s the bathrooms, sure, but we’re not supposed to just hide in there. If someone doesn’t take a break when they need, that puts patients at risk, and if they do outside the scheduled ”time,” then I guess we’re making up clinical hours! What if we need to take prescription medication? What if we need to take an important call? What if someone has sudden pain? By the way, our instructor WILL drop us, if we‘re tardy. I mean minutes, too.

I think my instructor is amazing, and I truly appreciate her. I also think that the student who was chosen to be “charge nurse” is lovely and I think she absolutely earned it. At the same time, today, and the …direction things have taken has left me uttery exhausted.

I work my tail off and still try to maintain a semblance of healthy working practices (not overexerting or overextending myself).

Has anyone seen cases where elderly family members have been abandoned? Not for lack of caring but for resources and aid? My wife was telling me about it. I’m having a hard time being my mother’s care giver. My mom wants me to let her go but I just can’t bring myself to do it. I guess what I’m asking is what happens when you just drop someone off at the hospital with nothing but their name and an ID. How would I know she safe? How would I be able to find her in the future? What happens? I have so many questions, like would she become a rad of the state etc. Any thoughts and suggestions would help. Please be respectful, I love my mother dearly but and I don’t take this decision lightly. I just don’t know what to do.

I interview to 2 positions in the same hospital as a CNA and I got 2 offers . Position 1 : Orthopedics floor - day shift
Position 2: PCU floor night shift

I have a homeless pt rn with a dog and it is so frustrating. I feel evil saying this but I really don’t know how they are allowing this. The dog is apparently paralyzed and urinates all over the patients bed, and pt is withdrawing from methadone so they can hardly do anything 😭😭 so frustrating, who knew cleaning up dog piss was in the job description!!!

Hello everyone, I got a CNA license in May 2024, and it expired in May of 2026. It’s been a couple of months since the expiration (2-ish months?), but would it still be possible to just pay a fee and easily renew my license? It might be important to know that I don’t have any paid work experience as a CNA.

I just wanted to see if anyone had any experience with renewing their license past the expiration date.

I currently work full time and was able to plan out 2 weeks of my PTO with a 2 week CNA program. I have to drive 1 hour each way since it's the only 2 week program I could find. Does anyone have any experience in a 2 week program? Or any tips for the CNA program in general? Thanks!

Hey everyone, I have my 3rd shift in a nursing home tmr and I’m just debating not going and quitting. I’m not typically a person who quits easily, but I’m just so overwhelmed.

Idk if this is every nursing home, but I’m on like 1:12 residents except it’s more like 2:12 because I’m just training alongside someone, and that’s hard enough for me tbh.

I feel like I can’t give everyone proper care. And I feel so lost all the time and like idk what to do for each resident and what they like etc.

Also idk if this is specific to my nursing home but we do like charting for every single person and it is just so overwhelming

I’ve trained alongside 2 cnas and they both felt like they were annoyed with me for being new. I feel so stupid and I wanna quit

Any advice to make me feel better or just in general is appreciated

It was really scary tbh, and the patient didn’t have the typical one sided weakness or facial droop. The patient’s blood pressure had a systolic of 204, and they were acting very confused and agitated. My adrenaline shot way up because they acted completely normal a few hours prior. I was the last to see them normal so the neurologist asked to talk to me. I’m a new CNA so I was very nervous!

The patient got moved to the ICU so I’m not sure how they’re doing now. Hopefully they got the treatment they needed in time.

What’s the scariest/craziest medical event you’ve witnessed as a CNA?

I’m 24 about to be 25 and I dropped out of college in 2019 due to personal/life reasons. I was in pre nursing and I’ve been struggling to get back into school between affording all of my bills and school costs. I get so defeated and feel so behind when I see so many people I went to school with already done with nursing school and I get sad that I’m not there too. I hate feeling like this so much. I know I’m young and have so much time ahead of me it just sucks I guess is all.

Blister juice on my scrubs

Hi, sorry if this is a stupid question but I'm super confused.

I'm doing a hybrid CNA program and we're on day 3. We've already covered objectives, ethical/legal issues, rights, communication, barriers, reports and observations, infections, documentation, etc.

Throughout all of this, it keeps mentioning that if I see something wrong with the resident (possible infection, cuts, bruises), to report but it doesn't go beyond that. Obviously I'd finish my task, but it says to both inform a nurse AND begin documenting straight away. I don't think I can do 2 things at once, so what would I do first in this scenario? TIA

I just got my CNA certification this month, and I got hired at the first skilled nursing facility I interviewed at. However, while I was at orientation today I got offered an interview for a hospital 5 minutes from my house. It is a med-surg floor. Both jobs are night shift, three 7pm-7am shifts. However, the SNF is 40 minutes from my house and pays slightly less. Needless to say, I called the hospital back immediately and I have an interview Friday afternoon. My main question is, how long does the hiring process take at an average hospital? Is it unlikely that I will leave the interview knowing if I got hired or not? It's also where I did my CNA clinicals back in June. I just feel bad that the SNF is spending money training me, just for me to possibly leave shortly after starting. Thank you for any advice!

I inserted a link above to my resume. I use this resume to apply to a PRN mental health tech at HCA Healthcare . The first time I applied, i was rejected pre-interview because they couldnt meet my compensation expectations (via automated message, not a recruiter). I applied again with a different email and got rejected again but with the reason that they were considering other candidates. I feel very qualified for the role and ive been rejected by at least 10-15 jobs from this company. I feel immensely over qualified for this role. And I need to know if my resume is the problem

Heres the job description:

As a Mental Health Technician, you will perform specific non-licensed or non-professional duties of patient care under the supervision of the Registered Nurse. You will provide direct patient care while effectively and therapeutically interacting with patients, significant others and other health care team members while delivering care to an assigned group of patients under supervision. The Mental Health Technician adheres to regulatory and patient care standards related to the delivery of patient care. Tasks and Responsibilities, you will: • Completes daily room searches and removes contraband items found. • Consistently completes Q15 minutes patient safety rounds and communicates findings and changes to the Registered Nurse. • Accurately communicates patient safety information such as known allergies, history of falls, risk for skin breakdown, risk of injury to self or others, and other key information to promote a safe environment. • Respond to psychiatric emergencies throughout the hospital. • Manages patients in a responsible manner to meet their safety, comfort and hygiene needs.

What qualifications you will need:

High School/GED

Basic Cardiac Life Support must be obtained within 30 days of employment start date

Nonviolent Crisis Intervention must be obtained within 30 days of employment start date

Other-Fingerprint Required

hey😅, so every time i finish a shift i catch myself worrying abt the oncoming cna complaining abt a resident on my assignment being wet. is that normal? and how can i get over that asap?! i don’t even finish rounds until 10:30pm when i’m supposed to clock out so i’m like pretty sure 9/10 they’re fine but…yk?

Hi I just got hired at a rehab/long term care facility and this is my first CNA job!! I am so excited, a lot of the other CNAs also appear to be around my age (22F) so I really want to make a good impression for them to like me.

What are some things to keep in mind when working with other CNAs/nurses and some tips with residents so I don't mess up horribly on my first couple of shifts?