I used to get in trouble for laughing. Apparently, if you're at work, you're not supposed to find anything funny. Now, granted, my laugh is loud and attracts attention but if something's funny, it's funny and I will laugh at it. Even when working at the C-store, I'd get the frowny face from my manager if I started laughing.
At the Nursing Center, I can laugh. Especially if I can get a resident to laugh along with me. Laughter is a good sound and the more smiles, the better.
Yesterday, one of the very confused ladies came over and sat next to us while we were eating supper. She lifted up the edge of the table cloth and tried to look under it.
I said to Aaron, "She's trying to look under your skirts," which scored a laugh from everyone at the table, including the resident and the kitchen staff who were cleaning up around us. This went on for a couple minutes, with the resident still goofing around and us making jokes.
I've never had a job where I've laughed as much as I have at this one.
Monday, March 16, 2009
Saturday, March 14, 2009
"She's a great worker, when she comes to work."
The truth of the matter is that no matter how good you are when you're at work, if you only show up for 75% of your scheduled days, you're not a good employee.
We recently lost a CNA because, while she was great with the residents, she would just decide not to come to work for several days at a time. It's a shame, because the residents loved her and she even won Employee of the Month once.
Now, she's gone and I'm not sure if I'm happy or sad about it. If her replacement is slightly less wonderful, but shows up all the time, I think I'm willing to make that trade.
We recently lost a CNA because, while she was great with the residents, she would just decide not to come to work for several days at a time. It's a shame, because the residents loved her and she even won Employee of the Month once.
Now, she's gone and I'm not sure if I'm happy or sad about it. If her replacement is slightly less wonderful, but shows up all the time, I think I'm willing to make that trade.
Thursday, March 12, 2009
Interrupting the Grieving Process
When we suffer a loss, we grieve. That's how we work through it and get to the other side so we can keep going. Generally, this starts out with crying.
Most of us are uncomfortable with tears. Not our own, but other folk's. We can cry all we want, but if someone else is crying, we don't know what to do.
Enter Better Living Through Chemistry.
Why is it that our first reaction is to pass out an Ativan or Xanax when a resident is crying? Why can't we just let them cry? I'm not talking about crying that lasts for hours and hours. Then some chemical help is called for. But if a resident gets news that a relative has died, surely we can let them cry for a little bit. When I cry, I don't reach for a pill to help me stop. Most of the time I don't even reach for a beer. (I save that for when I'm angry. Just kidding. Sort of.)
We need to let them go through the whole grieving process, even the crying. Even if it makes us uncomfortable, a hand to hold will do as much or more than a pill and with less side effects. It's OK to cry. And it's OK to feel uncomfortable when someone else is crying. We don't need to interrupt the grieving process unless it's negatively affecting the residents health.
Most of us are uncomfortable with tears. Not our own, but other folk's. We can cry all we want, but if someone else is crying, we don't know what to do.
Enter Better Living Through Chemistry.
Why is it that our first reaction is to pass out an Ativan or Xanax when a resident is crying? Why can't we just let them cry? I'm not talking about crying that lasts for hours and hours. Then some chemical help is called for. But if a resident gets news that a relative has died, surely we can let them cry for a little bit. When I cry, I don't reach for a pill to help me stop. Most of the time I don't even reach for a beer. (I save that for when I'm angry. Just kidding. Sort of.)
We need to let them go through the whole grieving process, even the crying. Even if it makes us uncomfortable, a hand to hold will do as much or more than a pill and with less side effects. It's OK to cry. And it's OK to feel uncomfortable when someone else is crying. We don't need to interrupt the grieving process unless it's negatively affecting the residents health.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
"It's all about love...
...and not about money." Rose by Buckcherry
OK, so that song has nothing whatsoever to do with being a CNA. But that line is the exact truth. The folks that get into this line of work for the money are many and few of them last long. You have to want to do it if you're going to stick with it for more than a couple of months. If money is your only motivation, you won't be happy being a CNA.
On the other hand, if you get a charge out of helping people, this is the job for you. If customer service of any kind rings your bell, you don't get more service oriented than being a Nursing Assistant. If knowing you've comforted someone or lent a sympathetic ear makes you happy, come on over. We can always use good people who don't mind taking a little crap in exchange for the joy you feel when you've helped someone feel better.
OK, so that song has nothing whatsoever to do with being a CNA. But that line is the exact truth. The folks that get into this line of work for the money are many and few of them last long. You have to want to do it if you're going to stick with it for more than a couple of months. If money is your only motivation, you won't be happy being a CNA.
On the other hand, if you get a charge out of helping people, this is the job for you. If customer service of any kind rings your bell, you don't get more service oriented than being a Nursing Assistant. If knowing you've comforted someone or lent a sympathetic ear makes you happy, come on over. We can always use good people who don't mind taking a little crap in exchange for the joy you feel when you've helped someone feel better.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Melodrama
I walked into a resident's room the other night to give them their medicine.
"Hi, Miss Jane. I've got some medicine for you," I said.
"Meet Miss Jones," she said. "The woman..." Pregnant pause. "...without a coat."
This is probably a location joke, but I nearly burst out laughing. You would have thought that she was missing a limb. I did try to help her look for it. And we notified Housekeeping to be on the lookout for it, too.
On the other hand, our resident's have already lost everything: Their homes, their independence, their health. A coat seems like a small thing. I'd just go buy a new one. To them, it's a metaphor for what their life has become: a series of small losses that have left them with nothing worth having.
We can make all the noise we want about making them feel needed and wanted and useful, but the bottom line is we can never replace what they had, however little it may have been to begin with. It sounded like melodrama, but she's really just in mourning.
"Hi, Miss Jane. I've got some medicine for you," I said.
"Meet Miss Jones," she said. "The woman..." Pregnant pause. "...without a coat."
This is probably a location joke, but I nearly burst out laughing. You would have thought that she was missing a limb. I did try to help her look for it. And we notified Housekeeping to be on the lookout for it, too.
On the other hand, our resident's have already lost everything: Their homes, their independence, their health. A coat seems like a small thing. I'd just go buy a new one. To them, it's a metaphor for what their life has become: a series of small losses that have left them with nothing worth having.
We can make all the noise we want about making them feel needed and wanted and useful, but the bottom line is we can never replace what they had, however little it may have been to begin with. It sounded like melodrama, but she's really just in mourning.
Sunday, March 8, 2009
No one ever thinks they'll end up in a Nursing Center
Truly. Most people figure that one day they'll just drop dead (hopefully later rather than sooner). Yet, as my instructor pointed out to me, we're all just a car accident away from lying in one of those beds ourselves.
The point of this blog post? To hell with: "would you want your momma treated that way?" That could be you in that bed. Treat them all the way you want to be treated when it's your turn. If you're lucky, good Karma will outweigh bad when it comes time to pay the Piper.
The point of this blog post? To hell with: "would you want your momma treated that way?" That could be you in that bed. Treat them all the way you want to be treated when it's your turn. If you're lucky, good Karma will outweigh bad when it comes time to pay the Piper.
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Can't we all just get along?
Seriously.
Our first responsibility is always to take care of the residents. But our second responsibility should be to take care of each other. Most of us are not working in a vacuum. We rely on our coworkers to show up and work alongside us so our residents are as comfortable as they can be. There's no benefit in deliberately doing things that make the job harder for the next shift. Hell, on any given day, there are things that we want to do that don't get done to make the next shift easier. Going out of our way to make the next shift harder is stupid and harmful to the residents.
What a dumb thing to be blogging about. This sounds like the kind of crap that goes on in high school. Yet, it's not. In fact, the people involved are all over 30 years old. If that doesn't frighten you, it should. It frightens me to realize that we never mature mentally beyond age 15.
My goal is always to leave work with everything and everyone in the same or better condition than when I came on shift. I don't want the folks on the next shift to groan when they come in and see me. I want them to know that they can rely on me to do my best. And when I don't make my goal, I apologize. I also sometimes offer to help them set things to rights so that they won't be completely miserable and overwhelmed.
If we take care of each other, the residents will also be better taken care of and that can do nothing but good for us as a Nursing Center.
Our first responsibility is always to take care of the residents. But our second responsibility should be to take care of each other. Most of us are not working in a vacuum. We rely on our coworkers to show up and work alongside us so our residents are as comfortable as they can be. There's no benefit in deliberately doing things that make the job harder for the next shift. Hell, on any given day, there are things that we want to do that don't get done to make the next shift easier. Going out of our way to make the next shift harder is stupid and harmful to the residents.
What a dumb thing to be blogging about. This sounds like the kind of crap that goes on in high school. Yet, it's not. In fact, the people involved are all over 30 years old. If that doesn't frighten you, it should. It frightens me to realize that we never mature mentally beyond age 15.
My goal is always to leave work with everything and everyone in the same or better condition than when I came on shift. I don't want the folks on the next shift to groan when they come in and see me. I want them to know that they can rely on me to do my best. And when I don't make my goal, I apologize. I also sometimes offer to help them set things to rights so that they won't be completely miserable and overwhelmed.
If we take care of each other, the residents will also be better taken care of and that can do nothing but good for us as a Nursing Center.
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