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Job Title: Certified Nursing Assistant
Education: Cerificate in Nursing Assistant, Walla Walla Community College
Previous Experience: I worked as a nursing assistant at a nursing home for six years before switching to work at a hospital.
Job Tasks: I work in a large hospital in the state of Washington that caters to a variety of people and also the outlying areas. We have a prominent cancer center and are developing more areas every day. We are one of the highest rated hospitals in the area. We are a catholic based hospital one of the first hospitals ever built in this area we also belong to a larger corporation called Providence which is a company known nation wide for hospitals, schools and other places as well.
As a CNA I am responsible for the direct care of the patients assigned to me. I work at night but have worked other shifts also.
In my line of work I am responsible for a variety of things such as all personal needs, all the things that the patient might require at the time, and keeping the RN's informed as to the conditions of the patients.
I work in different areas of the hospital as I am what they call a float which means that I work wherever they need me at the time. I have worked in post-op which caters to all the patients just comming from surgery. Also, I have worked in TCU which is the transitional care unit which usually caters to the older patients either going home or to a treatment center. I have also worked in other areas that cater to infections, wounds, or rehab.
I am in the process of being trained to work in the OB (Obsterics) department and also the ER (Emergency Room). At times I get put on what you would call "low census" when we might have a low number of patients and I'm put on call so they can call me in at night should the need arise somewhere for additional staffing.
Best and Worst Parts of the Job: The best things about my job would be the fact that I get to meet so many different people everyday, I get to watch as a child is born, or as a sick person or child gets better.
Some of the things I hate about my job are the times when no matter what you do you can't make someone feel better or make there pain go away. Also there are times when after everything you lose a patient anyway no matter what you do to prevent it.
Job Tips:
1. One of the things i would tell anyone who might want my job is that you can't let your stress interfere with your care of a patient.
2. Another tip would be if you feel yourself getting burnt out take some time for yourself otherwise it could reflect in your caring for your patients.
3. Last if you need help ask because nobody knows unless you say something and in this line of work. It can be easy to injure yourself or someone else if you try to take on everything yourself.
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