I got this in the inbox from someone who wants to be a CNA. Any advice?
"I'm currently contemplating becoming a CNA and have done extensive research into the job. My major worry is unwarranted hate and discrimination may turn into false accusations of abuse or rape. What do you think of a black male CNA's time in a nursing home facility compared to a hospital?"
Showing posts with label racism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label racism. Show all posts
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Sunday, January 2, 2011
CNAs empowering CNAs!
I am just excited to find this blog, despite the American nationalism it oozes on the banner (I dont think most CNAs are flag-touting American nationalists), and the pretty white Florence Nightingale lady it features.
It seems like this site comes at it from a somewhat professional angle, but hey, it has a good name and maybe there are some gems in there.
But I have been thinking of how we can put out there, the experiences and struggles that we CNAs face on the job, and have it be seen as LEGIT, REAL and be part of this debate on healthcare, patient safety, quality of life etc etc. So I am looking around for models. If you have any advice, send me what you got!
So here it is:
CNAs Empowering CNAs
http://nursingassistants.net/
Let's talk about RACE in these nursing homes...these old white racists who wont repent at their deathbed. Check this out:
Indiana: Residents Cannot Pick Caregivers Based on Race
Published by Patti at 6:00 am under News
For all the “conversations” this nation has regarding race issues, it seems that this should not be a concern: Residents/patients having the “right” to chose nurses, aides and other caregivers based upon their race. But it happens, often. It’s wrong. It’s discriminatory. And it’s about time something changes to end this. Indiana recognized this and have made it illegal.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Certified nursing assistant Brenda Chaney was on duty in an Indiana nursing home one day when she discovered a patient lying on the floor, unable to stand.
But Chaney couldn’t help the woman up. She had to search for a white aide because the woman had left instructions that she did not want any black caregivers. And the nursing home insisted it was legally bound to honor the request.
As usual, laws are written without legislators thinking of the consequences. It usually takes a few years for the full effect of these consequences to come to light.
Elderly patients, who won more legal control over their quality of life in nursing homes, sometimes want to dictate the race of those who care for them. And some nursing homes enforce those preferences in their staff policies.
The nursing assistant in this case sued the facility:
Documents in Chaney’s lawsuit, filed in 2008, say her daily assignment sheet at Plainfield Healthcare Center always included the reminder that one patient in her unit “Prefers No Black CNAs.”
Chaney, a 49-year-old single mother who at the time was helping to put her only son through college, initially went along with the policy despite her misgivings because she needed the money.
“I always felt like it was wrong,” said Chaney, who has worked in nursing homes since she earned certification in 2006. “I just had to go with the flow.”
The nursing home said it was just following a long-standing interpretation of the patients’ rights law. “The rules say this is their home and everyone else is just a visitor there, including staff,” said McSharar.
We work in a high stress field. No one deserves to be singled out for any reason, rejected and actually written off as a “patient right” issue. I’ve seen the opposite happen as well: Black residents refusing care from white (or Hispanic or Asian) aides.
An aide is an aide. A nurse is a nurse. We all have the same basic training and are fully capable of doing our jobs. It’s about time older people understand this.
It seems like this site comes at it from a somewhat professional angle, but hey, it has a good name and maybe there are some gems in there.
But I have been thinking of how we can put out there, the experiences and struggles that we CNAs face on the job, and have it be seen as LEGIT, REAL and be part of this debate on healthcare, patient safety, quality of life etc etc. So I am looking around for models. If you have any advice, send me what you got!
So here it is:
CNAs Empowering CNAs
http://nursingassistants.net/
Let's talk about RACE in these nursing homes...these old white racists who wont repent at their deathbed. Check this out:
Indiana: Residents Cannot Pick Caregivers Based on Race
Published by Patti at 6:00 am under News
For all the “conversations” this nation has regarding race issues, it seems that this should not be a concern: Residents/patients having the “right” to chose nurses, aides and other caregivers based upon their race. But it happens, often. It’s wrong. It’s discriminatory. And it’s about time something changes to end this. Indiana recognized this and have made it illegal.
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) – Certified nursing assistant Brenda Chaney was on duty in an Indiana nursing home one day when she discovered a patient lying on the floor, unable to stand.
But Chaney couldn’t help the woman up. She had to search for a white aide because the woman had left instructions that she did not want any black caregivers. And the nursing home insisted it was legally bound to honor the request.
As usual, laws are written without legislators thinking of the consequences. It usually takes a few years for the full effect of these consequences to come to light.
Elderly patients, who won more legal control over their quality of life in nursing homes, sometimes want to dictate the race of those who care for them. And some nursing homes enforce those preferences in their staff policies.
The nursing assistant in this case sued the facility:
Documents in Chaney’s lawsuit, filed in 2008, say her daily assignment sheet at Plainfield Healthcare Center always included the reminder that one patient in her unit “Prefers No Black CNAs.”
Chaney, a 49-year-old single mother who at the time was helping to put her only son through college, initially went along with the policy despite her misgivings because she needed the money.
“I always felt like it was wrong,” said Chaney, who has worked in nursing homes since she earned certification in 2006. “I just had to go with the flow.”
The nursing home said it was just following a long-standing interpretation of the patients’ rights law. “The rules say this is their home and everyone else is just a visitor there, including staff,” said McSharar.
We work in a high stress field. No one deserves to be singled out for any reason, rejected and actually written off as a “patient right” issue. I’ve seen the opposite happen as well: Black residents refusing care from white (or Hispanic or Asian) aides.
An aide is an aide. A nurse is a nurse. We all have the same basic training and are fully capable of doing our jobs. It’s about time older people understand this.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
VENTING
i had the most intense, demeaning day at work today. i was a poop cleaning machine literally. add to that, my coworker and i got slapped and smacked by our patients. the company stole my break time and even with that, i got yelled at by a nurse who treats me like some 6 y/o kid. they all treat us like we are kids, naturally lazy until probed and nagged. well, fuck that!!! the entire management at my workplace is white. the entire cna workforce is black and brown. some patients say literally racist things to us (like, "i want to shoot indians", or "go back to where you came from," or, "colored girl") while the management is liberally racist, and for all the work that we do, we are the first ones who are forced to take unpaid leave when there are vacant beds. even tho the work we do is the hardest. for all the christian lutheran faith this home was founded on, our boss makes 160,000 bucks a year while we make only 1/6th of that and they dare to tell us that they are short of $$. we used to have 3 guys doing laundry for a 120-bed facility. now we have only 1. and the guy comes 1 hour early UNPAID to get the work done. now they want to cut the CNAs to save money, and be more efficient. i am so mad.
i hate the healthcare industrial complex. i hate commodified care, i hate fucking nurses who piss on cnas -- and the same nurses who havent done a days work of being a cna. who would cringe at poop, and yet they talk to me like they own me. i wanted to cry out of anger and desperation cos i couldnt stop. 8 hours STRAIGHT of walking, lifting, cleaning, rushing, being bossed around.
ahhhh!!!!!!
AHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!
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