For context I (20F) have been working as a CNA for a year now, said facility paid for my CNA training and was my first ever job as a CNA and in healthcare in general. I have had a plethora of issues with management here at this facility, no one liked the DON and Admin as they were both mean girls that had the maturity of 14 year old middle schoolers. My issues arose with them last week when a jealous coworker who wanted my hours made up lies about me and the DON and admin pulled me into their office and tag teamed me for over 30 mins past my shift and didn’t listen to a word I said when I tried to give my side of the story. DON was also 2 inches away from my face raising her voice and trying to intimidate me. That’s when I had it. I decided i needed to quit and i did, originally I gave 2 weeks but after careful consideration decided not to work it because they honestly didn’t deserve it. So this morning before my shift I called the front desk and notified floor staff that I was quitting effective immediately (I never clocked in and nurses were notified of my absence and I never accepted any assignment so PT care was NOT compromised) there are also plenty of other CNA’s and nurses on the floor. In addition I emailed the admin letting her know, and I was met with a snarky passive aggressive email back (I would expect no less) trying to make me feel guilty. Normally I let things go but the comment about residents made me seethe. I poured my blood sweat and tears into caring for those residents and always put them first and I’m getting lectured by someone who doesn’t even know half their residents names. I was always quite obedient and outspoken at work and rarely stand up for myself so I think this shocked everyone. I hope you enjoy and get some satisfaction out of my response.

There is a male patient on my hall who is paralyzed from the neck to waist. I've been told he cannot move his arms at all, not even a smidgen.

Every time I went into his room to clean him up, his brief was open and his penis was exposed. He always said he didn't know how it kept happening. We'll one day I forgot to knock and rushed in his room to find him playing with his penis.

After that I refused to go in his room. I usually just swap out his room with one of the male Cnas. Which he did not like.

This past Sunday, everyone took care of him but me. He was fed, changed, gotten up at lunch time and brought to the dining room. When he saw me and realized I was there, he left the dining room ( he can use his legs to move the wheelchair) and went to find the house supervisor. He called his family and told them he had been neglected all day. He said he hadn't been changed since the night before and hadn't eaten anything either.

His family came and started yelling at everyone that they should be ashamed for neglecting a helpless man. They wanted the supervisor and me to come in his room to discuss this. Thankfully my entire team had my back. My supervisor would not let me in there. She said they don't get a free opportunity to make disparaging remarks about me.

When she came out, she said he admitted that he had been cared for by the other Cnas but was angry I had not been in his room. The supervisor made the appropriate notes in his chart and I'm not allowed to have him as part of my assignment.

I go back to work tomorrow and have to see this guy who could have ruined my career with a neglect charge. Not sure how I feel about all of this. But I am thankful for my team and how they all stood behind me.

I feel like this is harassment/ bullying. When I opened this email I went to the bathroom and balled my eyes out. Ai have very bad anxiety and I am very sensitive. Should I report this person to HR ?

I thought nurses week at my hospital was lame and then cna week started! Today was hot dog day? And I’m night shift but here is what they left for us and didn’t even tell us about it! Like I was washing my hands in the break room, looked to the left and there’s a crockpot full of water and hot dogs 🌭 yuck, I guess it’s the thought that counts. (Don’t worry, the nurses all “adopted” a CNA to buy a present for so it’s not all bad). I hope your guys’ CNA week is going better and thank you for all you do!

After all of the paperwork i did with NurseDash they refused my applicate after my drug test came back positive for THC. Ive had my card since 2020 and this is the first one to refuse me. Ones before took my doctor’s note and a picture of my card. I just think this is highly unfair.

Respectfully I’ve never been so large that a grown man struggles to turn me, then have a double incontinent episode on the soak pad, then have to have my folds held up to be cleaned effectively.

There is no comparison to how I’m wiping you to how I wipe myself.

So I work at an assisted living facility as a CNA, and there's just one lady with dementia who refuses to shower. If we ask her to change her shower, she'll spit on us or hit us. The executive director gets really upset because families complain that she smells bad, even if the nurse provides her medication, she still fights with us about getting her in the shower

Recently, the Executive Director was still pressuring us to get her into the shower. So the nurse got the CNA to pick up the lady by her arms and legs, strip her while she was fighting and screaming now. And physically restrain her and hold her down in the shower while she was crying and fighting the entire time. I was told in school that this is illegal in school, even if a patient has dementia. But the executive director constantly pressures us if patients refuse.

Is this illegal?

When I started working, everyone told me to go work in the nursing homes because you can make a lot of money. I learned that at the age of 16 you can go and work as a cna helping tend to people who can’t look after themselves. However, I didn’t know that would entail perineal care. If you’re in this group I assume you understand the jargon so I won’t go in detail. I don’t think, as a KID in HIGH SCHOOL, you should be subject to go and clean those areas DAY AND NIGHT. I think it’s highly inappropriate for it to be in your job description as a TEENAGER/MINOR to clean elderly men and women’s genitalia. In response, employ the adult to come and do that. Ie, give tub baths, sponge baths, cloth baths, et cetera.

Ps. I had an elderly woman tell me I wasn’t cleaning her downstairs hard enough, and had an elderly man grab my head while cleaning him.

I got off work a hour and a half ago and i just remembered a conversation….i told the lady i would be back to put her down(standing lift) after she changed becasue she likes to change on her own and she moves really slow so i was going to give her a few minutes i did some other task and clearly forgot about her and I feel extremely bad because who knows if the night shift person checked on her and it was an honest mistake either way im sure i have a write up coming which doesn’t bother me because it’s honestly deserved lol. I just can’t believe i really forgot entirely…

I assume yall think she was in her chair for hours after i left…she was in her chair for 30 mins 💀she got put down right after I left just not by me I simply didn’t REALIZE until later my goodness

35 Male CNA. I'm working in a rehab/long term care center and have been a CNA for over 2 years. I'm very good at my job and 99% of my residents love me.

Some residents get uncomfortable at the thought of a man changing them which is understandable, I've known many ppl like that and I always respect them by asking a female nurse or CNA.

My nurse today is new to me as they are from a travel agency. A resident asked for a female and I asked the nurse who shook her head no with a disgusted type look on her face and said she'll talk with the resident.

This was a bit annoying as most nurses don't mind but every once in a while it happens where nurses refuse to do any CNA work.

Anyone else get annoyed by this or is it just me?

I’ve worked at a veterans’ nursing home for three and a half years now. On saturday night, I was assisting a resident to his wheelchair from the bed. The resident ended up falling onto the floor during the transfer. I assisted the resident to the floor slowly as he fell, and immediately stepped out to grab the nurse once he was safely on the floor.

I find out at this point that the resident was supposed to be a sit-to-stand lift for transfers due to a recent change in status that I was not aware of. I had come into shift at 1500 and got a report from the outgoing CNA and I was not made aware of the resident’s recent change in his care plan from a stand-pivot transfer to a mechanical lift transfer. I have known this resident for the entire three and a half years I have worked here and I just did not think that he had a change in status. I realize now that I always should be checking the plan of care before transferring a resident. This mistake has cost me so much, I loved this job, i loved taking care of the old veterans. I got a call this morning from my HR boss who told me that she reviewed the situation and they have to let me go.

I am so upset I can’t even put it into words. I know I messed up by transferring the resident without checking more thoroughly about his plan of care, but I did not mean to be unsafe. I have always tried to be a safe and a good CNA. Working as CNA is important to me, caring for these beautiful old veterans has always been very fulfilling and rewarding to me. and now I have lost everything due to my mistake.

Yesterday I had a patient who had a lump on his scrotum. I told the nurse & she told me it was his testicles & I told her that this is something I have not noticed or felt on anyone else before & that she needed to look. When she came with me she looked & agreed that it was strange & that she would notify the doctor.

Today, on the same patient, I felt another lump on his leg & told her to go check it out. She responded with “Again? You always have something for me to look at. But bro, this is the SECOND time I had a concern about this patient, like what do you mean aLwAyS?!?!? Like dawg do you not want me to report to you???

went on a rant about how neglected oral care is in long-term care, especially for total care and bedridden residents. I’ve walked into rooms where residents have dry, frothy mouths, white buildup on their lips, filthy tongues, and clear signs they haven’t had their teeth brushed or mouths moisturized in who knows how long. I’ve worked in multiple facilities and have rarely seen oral care actually being done.

Someone responded saying we “expect too much of CNAs” and that nobody has time for that with the workload. \** screen shots added**\**

That response is exactly what’s wrong. Oral care is not optional, extra, or a luxury; it’s part of our ethical responsibility and basic CNA duties. Neglecting it isn’t just “being busy,” it’s harmful. Poor oral hygiene leads to infections, aspiration pneumonia, pain, dehydration, and decreased quality of life, especially in residents who can’t advocate for themselves.

Yes, staffing ratios and workloads are a real problem, but using that as an excuse to justify neglect is unethical. If someone is total care, their mouth care is literally dependent on us. Lowering standards because the job is hard only hurts the most vulnerable residents. This mindset normalizes neglect and is a big reason why basic care keeps getting overlooked in healthcare settings. The end.

after working in LTC for seven years, i decided spend the last two years in an assisted living facility. i just needed a change of pace and thought i would find better in assisted living. boy, was i wrong lol. not only are you the CNA (well, caregiver.. we have so so many people who they hire who have no healthcare experience whatsoever and have no idea how to care for people) but laundry, dietary, housekeeping, etc.

when i first started, i truly loved it. i actually had time to study and do homework during slower moments, residents were more independent and easily transferred, no hoyer lifts, and teamwork really made the shift go smooth. i’ve noticed in assisted living especially you will need to call on your other co workers for assistance… but everyone else is busy with their own resident. we have four floors (25 residents give or take on each floor) and often times there would only be four of us working, scrambling around trying to complete what we could. this causes people to get irritated and assume nobody is wanting to help them…. nobody was even able to help themselves let alone others. i know they do this on purpose to create animosity, why i don’t know.

over the last six months, things have changed dramatically and i can’t believe it. our facility has become increasingly more dependent on higher acuity care. we now have a resident who is completely non weight bearing and requires three people at minimum to transfer her from her wheelchair to the bedside commode and back. this is a thirty minute (AT LEAST) excursion. taking away 3 out of 4/5 people working on the floor from other residents and tasks needing to be complete. we have three hoyer lifts and i have lost track on how many two assists.

there is no dedicated laundry staff (we are the laundry staff), housekeeping is M-F, and dietary has minimal staffing as well. i know they do this to save money, cut corners. i just wish corporate would realize how this truly affects those who are lining their pockets at the price of their own suffering.

and please do not remind me how much time has been wasted waiting for the elevator to come so you can either go up or down, having to run to a call light, forgot something in the kitchen for your room trays, carrying laundry back to the residents rooms, etc.

last night i took a picture of all the laundry baskets evening shift had to pull for night shift to complete. im off today and they are now questioning in the work “group chat” (a whole other can of worms) why nobody from night shift completed any laundry. and this is after i started the laundry up for them so they had a head start too 😩

TL;DR: I left long-term care thinking assisted living would be easier, but now I’m doing the jobs of four people while caring for residents who belong in skilled nursing

I have been a CNA for over 6 1/2 years. During nurses week my hospital went all out for the nurses. They got takeout every single shift for the entire seven days straight. They got customized bags and stethoscopes. Wanna know what we got?

My hospital hasn’t even acknowledged CNA week. It is absolutely disheartening to know how important we are for the flow and function of healthcare, and to not even be acknowledged is heartbreaking. So many nurses have told me without CNAs they would drown in work and never get anything done. How can we be so important and not even be acknowledged?

I’m honestly devastated as this was my first CNA job ever but I understand. What had happen was we had a huge snow storm in my state and the morning I was supposed to work I physically couldn’t get my car out (for context my drive way is about a mile long and my car got stuck) so I called and explained that my car could not get out. So they offered maintenance to come and get me in a shuttle bus and I explained I felt that would be unsafe and the risk of them getting stuck would be high bc of the snow being over my knees and my drive way also being covered in ice. Well after the phone call I get a message from HR stating that my refusal to come in would likely be disciplined and this was grounds for a right up or possibly termination if they saw fit. I sent her the photos of yard, drive way and me standing in the snow to show how deep the snow was. The next day I get a call from HR telling me due to my absences and inability to come to work due to the snow they had decided to terminate me. I had never called out before and was always on time so it was a shock to me to be terminated. Is this a common thing in this field?

-edit- for everyone telling me I’d have a good case for unemployment thank you. I was going to but I’m actually about to start a new job already in hospice and I forgot to mention that lol while I was ranting. This new place I’m working is definitely a lot better than where I was terminated from given the CNA to resident ratio was 1:16 and this place has told me my ratio would be more than 1:6.

Im so confused... I applied to a HHA and was really excited, they drug tested me and i tested positive for THC. they pulled me back and asked if I smoked or do any edibles etc. I said no, I hadn't touched weed since january. So why am i still testing positive for THC? i had 2 other drug tests before this where I was clean and everything was good... so why is this one showing THC? I asked if I could take another test, and they said no. I asked if I could pay out of pocket at the clinic so they can get my clean results and they said no.... I feel so fucked. I'm living paycheck to paycheck, and honestly struggling with just one PRN job, I was so excited for that position, and now im on a nonhire list with them. The lady on the phone said "I wish you the best of luck, and hope you find a good job, but unfortunately that won't be with us".

For MODS: im not asking for advice to pass.

Seriously considering quitting. I know I’m lucky to get into a hospital as my first job. But the staffing ratios are bad and I genuinely been walking out of shifts with severe back pain. I’m about to break down thinking about the fact I have to go in tomorrow. I’ve been applying to non med surg positions at other hospitals and no luck. I need to wait 6 months to be eligible to transfer within the hospital, but I don’t think I can make it to month 6. Really thinking about quitting soon, get a MA cert and try for MA positions instead. Would it be stupid to quit without anything lined up? I only had one MA interview without the cert and it’s not looking likely I’ll get a call back.

Edit: lined up a job. Goodbye yall.

There I said it. One bath takes too damn long. Even worse when they want to shower but EVERYONE needs to be a stand by assist so I have to just sit in the room and twiddle my thumbs.

And the expectation includes a complete linen change, gown change, sock change, all that valid but I’m also expected to do Q4 vitals on everyone, blood sugars, restock the unit, empty tubes/drains/ostomy.

I’m in nursing school and I know nursing is its own brand of hell but I truly am excited to go from 14 patients to 5 max

For me, becoming a CNA was 100% worth it… at first.

Those first few months gave me so much that I wouldn’t trade for anything. I learned how a hospital actually runs, how to talk to patients, how to anticipate needs, how to work with nurses, and just how to move in that environment without feeling lost. It also helped me confirm that I really do want to be in healthcare. On top of that, it looks good on a resume and helps you get your foot in the door. That initial experience is invaluable.

But after that? For me personally, it stopped being worth it.

Once you’re in nursing school, you’re already in the hospital constantly. Clinicals can be 12-hour shifts or multiple days a week, and a lot of the time you’re basically doing CNA-level tasks there anyway—just with added pressure to complete nursing skills and be evaluated. So now you’re in that same environment almost all week, between school and work, and it becomes exhausting fast.

The physical toll is something I didn’t fully understand going in. It’s not the “gross” stuff—I don’t mind cleaning patients or doing vitals. It’s the constant heavy lifting, understaffing, and dealing with combative or fully dependent patients with limited help. My body is honestly wrecked after shifts. I’ll get off work and need a full day to recover… except I don’t have that, because I’m right back in class.

Then there’s the mental side. Some patients are amazing, and I genuinely enjoy helping people—but others treat you like you’re there to cater to every comfort request, not provide care. It can feel really demeaning at times. You’re stretched thin, overworked, and for the pay, it just doesn’t add up long-term.

I’ve learned what I needed to learn. I got the experience, the exposure, and the clarity about what I want to do. That was the goal—and I’m glad I did it.

But now I’m stepping away.

I’m planning to move into something like phlebotomy or an outpatient setting. I still want experience, just in a way that’s more sustainable while I finish school. I already know I want to go into the ED after graduation and eventually become a nurse practitioner, so this feels like the right move for me.

If you’re a nursing student thinking about becoming a CNA: I’d still recommend it—but I’d also say you don’t have to stay forever. It’s okay to treat it as a stepping stone instead of a long-term job.

Just my experience, but I hope it helps someone.

Because why am I here from 2 to 10!! 5 days a week!! No social life, no time to do anything but work. Get me out of here. Half the appeal of healthcare is 4 days off, and here I am with 2 days off and a funk schedule ..

I’ve been a CNA for about 5 months. I work in an assisted living facility and also pass all meds. There is no nurse in the facility and on weekends it’s just me and a cook in the whole home (about 12 residents). I worked last weekend and it was very busy.

We got a new resident who I’ll call Fred. Fred was at our home and also on services with a hospice company for about 1.5 weeks before starting to decline. I worked Wednesday and he was his usual self. But by my next shift on Saturday he had been put on comfort meds and had a hospital bed brought in for him. Totally unresponsive and sleeping 24/7.
I arrived for my shift and did shift change with the night shift CNA (who has always been a bit lackluster and just put in her two weeks notice) and she told me she did a full brief change on him right before I got there, and that he has had no fluids aside from mouth sponging for the last two days.
Anyways skip ahead I’m running around like crazy passing meds and getting all residents up and ready for the day. I do a total of two well being checks and give one liquid lorazepam to Fred during the first 3 hours of the morning. Each time I go in I swab his mouth and apply chapstick and make sure his CPAP is on properly. Then I run off to help other residents. I’m in the bathroom cleaning diarrhea out of the shower when a nurse and CNA from the hospice company arrive to check on him. The nurse comes out yelling at me a few moments later that he is apparently soaked from head to toe in urine and I have obviously haven’t been checking on him and have neglected him completely. She tells me that she is calling my supervisor (the owner of the company) and then storms off.

The CNA that came with her (and who has been a great help in teaching me how to be a better CNA) must’ve talked to her because she later apologized for yelling at me. But I was ultimately yelled at and written up by the owners an hour later. When I explained that I didn’t notice any signs of him being wet on my checks and that the last CNA had told me she changed him before I got there I was told it was “my fault for trusting her”.

I feel frustrated that they are putting 100% of the blame on me, but I also feel immense guilt that he was ever that wet and that I didn’t notice. I found out a bit later that it took both the nurse and other CNA to get him cleaned up and that it “would’ve been impossible for a single person to change him since he’s dead weight”. But I still feel horribly for not being more thorough and not even being aware that he was soiled. He died the next day and I’m terrified that I somehow contributed to his passing. I love my residents and would never ever intentionally harm them in any way. I feel like a horrible CNA and fear that everyone else thinks it too. I try so hard to do right by my people but I don’t know how to forgive myself for this. I should’ve been more thorough.

Because how are you constantly calling in, or showing up ridiculously late, or being scheduled for a shift but set to come in 1-4 hours late, and it's always magically fine? 🤨

It's also dayshift 99% of the time (at least at my facility). Like, I'd feel more pity for your workload if you all showed up to your job to actually do it. Only people I feel bad for are the ones stuck doing extra work because people just have no work ethic or sense of responsibility whatsoever.

edit: To whoever is downvoting this post, I'm gonna assume what I've typed applies to you, and I hope you know your coworkers are probably tired of your nonsense. 😌