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Prince · 12-11-2004, 07:09 AM

This might get long and boring, so I won't blame you for clicking the Back button.

I work as a nursing assistant, or nurse's aide. Have been doing this for 8 months now. I work the graveyard shift at a nursing home. On a typical night, I care for about 25 residents, sometimes 30-35 if we're short. Do rounds every 2 hrs, change beds, clean them up, replace/fill water pitchers, wash wheelchairs, take vital signs, wash soiled linen, and get some residents up in the morning after my last round. Almost every single night is a race against time.

I'm not complaining about it, though. I get paid $8.50 an hour, which isn't anything to write to home about, but it's decent, and I always get at least 40 hours a week, sometimes more if I want to pick up shifts.

The place I work for, has gone through a lot of changes. The old DON got escorted out by the cops for stealing narcotic meds, a nurse got fired and the old admin "stepped down". This all within the last couple of months. So we got a new DON and admin, who seemed adamant to make some changes around the place. We had had a lot of staff quitting and were constantly short for a while, because of how shitty things were.

But the changes they have made so far have mostly been bullshit ones, such that do nada but make the job more difficult for those working the floor. And they have not addressed the non-stop gossip and backstabbing among the staff at all. Every shift complains about the previous shift, and tries to nail them for having made a mistake. Except the night shift, we just don't have the time for it, we're a pretty good crowd.

They recently pulled the 2nd nurse from the night shift, replacing her with a med aide, to cut costs. Only one nurse in the whole facility during the night? Not good, if you ask me. The med aide is back in the Alzheimer's unit, there's no nurse there now, and she barks orders at the CNAs.

I'm sure this all seems pretty much nothing to whine about. It's just that they have been increasing the work load so much that it cuts into the resident care. We just simply do not have enough time to provide ample care for these poor people. But for the most part, it is all perfectly legal. The only thing I can accomplish by complaining about it is getting myself fired.

Meanwhile for the past month or two, I've began to like going to work less. I used to love going in, doing my job. But there's all this added bullshit that even has my charge nurse talking about quitting.

I never, ever feel like I did a good enough job when I leave in the early hours of the morning. I never feel like it is good enough. Every single in-service meeting we have, they tell us how we are "not irreplaceable", and that we are not there for the money, we're there for the residents. I understand the idea behind that, but let's be realistic for Christ's sake.

Sometimes I just sit in the car after work and cry. I barely sleep anymore. I went 9 days straight recently with 3-4 hours of sleep between shifts. I could not fall asleep because I was stressing out about the next shift pretty much as soon as I was done with the previous one.

It would be easier if I did not give a shit about the work I do. There are aides that I work with that get caught for not doing their jobs, it happens a lot. I've never been written up, never been late for worked, only called in once because I was sick, never asked for time off. I'm a good worker and take pride in that. I just can't start fucking up at work intentionally in an effort to take things easier because it affects the residents I take care of.

What I don't know, is whether this is what work simply is supposed to be like, nowadays, or whether I am burning out. Maybe it is like this wherever you go and whatever you do. Because I don't see how anyone could be burning out after only 8 months.

12-11-2004, 07:09 AM	#1 (permalink)
Prince /nɑndəsˈkrɪpt/ Location: LV-426	Work. This might get long and boring, so I won't blame you for clicking the Back button. I work as a nursing assistant, or nurse's aide. Have been doing this for 8 months now. I work the graveyard shift at a nursing home. On a typical night, I care for about 25 residents, sometimes 30-35 if we're short. Do rounds every 2 hrs, change beds, clean them up, replace/fill water pitchers, wash wheelchairs, take vital signs, wash soiled linen, and get some residents up in the morning after my last round. Almost every single night is a race against time. I'm not complaining about it, though. I get paid $8.50 an hour, which isn't anything to write to home about, but it's decent, and I always get at least 40 hours a week, sometimes more if I want to pick up shifts. The place I work for, has gone through a lot of changes. The old DON got escorted out by the cops for stealing narcotic meds, a nurse got fired and the old admin "stepped down". This all within the last couple of months. So we got a new DON and admin, who seemed adamant to make some changes around the place. We had had a lot of staff quitting and were constantly short for a while, because of how shitty things were. But the changes they have made so far have mostly been bullshit ones, such that do nada but make the job more difficult for those working the floor. And they have not addressed the non-stop gossip and backstabbing among the staff at all. Every shift complains about the previous shift, and tries to nail them for having made a mistake. Except the night shift, we just don't have the time for it, we're a pretty good crowd. They recently pulled the 2nd nurse from the night shift, replacing her with a med aide, to cut costs. Only one nurse in the whole facility during the night? Not good, if you ask me. The med aide is back in the Alzheimer's unit, there's no nurse there now, and she barks orders at the CNAs. I'm sure this all seems pretty much nothing to whine about. It's just that they have been increasing the work load so much that it cuts into the resident care. We just simply do not have enough time to provide ample care for these poor people. But for the most part, it is all perfectly legal. The only thing I can accomplish by complaining about it is getting myself fired. Meanwhile for the past month or two, I've began to like going to work less. I used to love going in, doing my job. But there's all this added bullshit that even has my charge nurse talking about quitting. I never, ever feel like I did a good enough job when I leave in the early hours of the morning. I never feel like it is good enough. Every single in-service meeting we have, they tell us how we are "not irreplaceable", and that we are not there for the money, we're there for the residents. I understand the idea behind that, but let's be realistic for Christ's sake. Sometimes I just sit in the car after work and cry. I barely sleep anymore. I went 9 days straight recently with 3-4 hours of sleep between shifts. I could not fall asleep because I was stressing out about the next shift pretty much as soon as I was done with the previous one. It would be easier if I did not give a shit about the work I do. There are aides that I work with that get caught for not doing their jobs, it happens a lot. I've never been written up, never been late for worked, only called in once because I was sick, never asked for time off. I'm a good worker and take pride in that. I just can't start fucking up at work intentionally in an effort to take things easier because it affects the residents I take care of. What I don't know, is whether this is what work simply is supposed to be like, nowadays, or whether I am burning out. Maybe it is like this wherever you go and whatever you do. Because I don't see how anyone could be burning out after only 8 months. __________________ Who is John Galt?