Nursing Assistant a good job for year off???

[gotigers]

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Hey ya'll, need some honest advice--

I'm applying next month (oh dear!) and have average stats, 3.7 and a 30Q, so I'm applying liberally and broadly and to as many schools as I can afford. I need a job for this coming year and my EC's aren't particularly strong so I am considering training as a CNA and getting a full time nursing assistant job. Has anyone done this, and/or know if this would be good experience for med school application purposes??? Thanks so much for your advice!

Go Blue!

Josh

 

[terpgirl]

Do something YOU want to do... don't do it to impress adcoms. I'd rather listen to you talk passionately about a job you loved instead of babbling on and on about something you had no passion for, but did to impress others.

-Liz

 

[gotigers]

thanks, i think that's great advice. i really want to interact with patients and get my hands as dirty as i can this year. hopefully being a nursing assistant could scratch my itch.

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

If you want to get your hands dirty, CNA sounds just right.

 

[TheRussian]

If your idea of getting dirty is cleaning up after people than CNA might be good. My recommendation to everyone that wants to get hands on experience with patients is to become an EMT. As an EMT you'll actually be providing some care to the patients like giving very limited meds, stabilizing trauma patients, as well as taking histories.

As for that whole idea about doing something that you are passionate about, my feeling is that you don't know what you are going to be passionate about until you try it so don't listen to people that won't give you a yes or no answer because it's supposed to be about "what YOU want". That's just BS.

 

[honsano]

If I were you I wouldn't be a CNA during my year off. I was one during the summer of my senior year in highschool and just hated it. I was cleaning up messes in rooms (like beds all the time), cleaning patients, and just basically not learning much. I dunno, you do see some interesting stuff and some people really do like it, but as for myself, I don't think giving a patient a sponge/towelette bath a learning or an enjoyable experiance.

 

[terpgirl]

Ignore the post above me. I don't know you, you only know yourself, so do what YOU want to do. If CNA is what you wanna do, do it. You have a good idea as to what you're getting yourself into in this job, and it's what you want to try. So do what you want to do, don't do something for the sake of others, or because TheRussian suggests being an EMT doing that. It's a bad idea (been there, done that, bought the t-shirt AND wrote the book--and I did write a book!).

-Liz

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

I agree 100%. This particular position is not representative of health care in general. It's more oriented towards the scut. I'm not degrading CNA's, they do a fantastic job that many wouldn't or couldn't do.

And, certainly, ADCOMs would love to see it on an app.

But, there are more fun, challenging, and relevant things to do with your year off. It is the last year off you will have until retirement, IF you ever retire. Go abroad, challenge yourself, find new hobbies, explore interests that you've hidden away. You can do volunteer work that's much more challenging, like in Africa or other underserved countries.

A year off is a time for serious challenges and adventures! It may seem undoable at first, but there are dozens of people in this forum who have been truly changed by using their year off wisely.

 

[KCAccidental]

I'm in the same shoes as gotigers and I was wondering if anybody had actually worked as a CNA for their year off and if they could describe their experience. Also, how did you become certified as a CNA? I read somewhere that most people just get certification at the nursing home taht they work at. is that true? also, because finances are going to be an issue for my year off, how is the pay.
any info would be appreciated.
- chris

 

[honsano]

For certification, they had a program at my highschool where you would go to school on campus for like 6 weeks (during the summer) and learn stuff you may be doing like how to lift people properly and other things. Then, we went and trained in a nursing home for like 2 weeks. Afterwards, we went to the hospital which would employ us. We worked there for about 2 to 4 weeks, then took the certification test. As for the pay, I think I got about $10.50 an hour. I know I got lucky in that my school provided a free program in which I could gain certification. I think most people have to go through certain companies that they pay or something, I honestly don't know how others do it, I just SORT OF remember how I did it. Once again, my memory on the whole thing is sketchy because it was about four years ago. Good Luck to you and if I had the choice, I wouldn't do it again. Then again I am not you.

 

[17shakespeare]

Just my wanted to throw my opinion into the mix. I'm currently taking a year off and going to med school next year, and have worked as a nursing assistant and also as a math tutor. I got very frustrated with my nursing assistant job as I felt I learned most of the job within the first few weeks, and didnt see much new during the rest of the year. But it was good experience, and when it was quiet, the residents and nurses taught me a lot. My advice is that if you do the nursing assistant position, get the job in the ER (basically an ER tech). I didnt need to take a CNA class, as the ER trained me on the job. They also taught me how to draw blood, which CNAs in the rest of the hospital dont get to do. And while there was more than enough dirty work to do, when traumas roll in, the techs are right there in the middle of it doing CPR and other misc. things. Hope this helps.

 

[TheRussian]

Ignore the post above me. I don't know you, you only know yourself, so do what YOU want to do. If CNA is what you wanna do, do it. You have a good idea as to what you're getting yourself into in this job, and it's what you want to try. So do what you want to do, don't do something for the sake of others, or because TheRussian suggests being an EMT doing that. It's a bad idea (been there, done that, bought the t-shirt AND wrote the book--and I did write a book!).

-Liz

Like I said in my previous posts, most people don't know what they like doing until they try it so stop telling people to do what they want to do or are "passionate" about. If they really had such a passion they wouldn't be asking us.

Explain to me how being an EMT is a bad idea. Every interview I had complemented on my experiences as an EMT. True a lot of people applying to med schools become EMTs but the same goes for CNAs so there really is no difference. Also as an EMT you will have different experiences every day and you'll have the opportunity to learn a lot, mostly not about medicine but about yourself and how to deal with patients.

 

[ad_sharp]

I worked as a CNA during college. It is not mentally stimulating work by any stretch, but it was a very good experience, and I would do it again. Interviewers were very positive in their feedback about the experience. The OP isn't going to be making a career out of this. CNA is a great way to show that you actually care about people because the job perks aren't good. Just go with your gut. CNA or EMT are both great and will look great on your app.

 

[getcloned]

x

 

[u2psalm40]

sounds like scut.

my gut feeling is don't do it b/c if it is to counter average numbers, not enough ECs, it wouldn't be the way to go:

do you have a passion for something? do that. do you have time to shadow a doctor for a year? do that too. do you need money as well? do the EMT thing or ER tech. do you feel like you can take a course at a local college to counter what you see as maybe deficient in your test scores or transcript? do that. you can conquer several different fronts-- don't put all your eggs in one basket.

my point is make sure you do something that you believe in b/c when interview time comes, you'll have to convince not just yourself, but your interviewer, that you see the reasoning for what you're doing, etc.

and also you never know what part of yourself your interviewer will take to in your amcas, PS, or interview. weird clubs, travel, good reads. just know yourself well.

 

[heeldoc23]

I graduated in december, been working as a CNA ever since. The class I took was 10 hrs a week for like 12 weeks, but I think my state has stricter guidelines than average.
CNA work is not necessarily hard, strenuous, or mind-stimulating. It is kinda nasty cause you are always low-man on the totem pole and end up cleaning up puke, piss, and changing addult diapers.
Overall though, I feel like it had been a good experiance but I can't wait for it to be over so I can start med school. I feel as if it did help me get into medical school and certain schools seemed very impressed. I dont think it's a route many people take.
My advice: If you're a people person who doesn't mind getting your hands dirty, and can deal with very, very low pay: GO FOR IT. I did it and will be attending a very good school come fall with pretty average numbers.

 

[Horseradish99]

I worked as a CNA throughout the summers in undergrad, and honestly, it was what I needed to push me into medicine. It is the lowest of the low, but that's precisely what I needed to humble me enough to know what medicine is REALLY all about.

I do know a lot of CNA's who hate their jobs and hated the experience, partly because you see people in their worst states and people can be very mean and demanding and blame you for things you can't control.

On the other side, people appreciate you so much!! You will never know just how great it feels to give someone an enema and have them ask you to hold their hand. I mean it sounds dumb but seriously, people appreciate what you do for them.

One warning: it makes a difference WHERE you are a CNA. I worked in an ICU and saw TONS of neat things and had the best nurses there to work with. Once in awhile if we had a low patient load that day, I got pulled to a post-operative ward and it royally sucked. Nurses were busy and overstressed and didn't really want to do much teaching.

That was just my experience.

Try it out... what do you have to lose... it's a good job.

Scott

 

[MsAlaska]

I worked as a CNA in a long term living facility for a year during undergrad. If you decide to go that route, all I can say is that after a few weeks on the job you will be doing it purely out of strong work ethic and compassion and desire to help others. Your theory on doing it to look good on your apps will not hold you through for the long haul, it is physically and emotionally a very challenging job with low pay. Perhaps this is why it holds so much sway with admissions committees? In any case many nursing homes have such a high turnover rates that they will pay to put their aides through training. This is due in a huge part to a lot of premeds that go through training and after a few weeks of working as NAs, can't handle it anymore and decide to put something easier on their apps. I started at 9.25(night shift), got paid minimum wage during class time, had all the classes and certification costs paid for, got bonuses of $3-500(I forgot it was a long time ago), and increased my wages to a whopping $9.75. The home I worked at was also great about paying overtime for covering random shifts, of which there were many,(even if you only worked part-time to begin with).

Wow, after that long train of thought, simply said-I would highly recommend the experience. Not mentally challenging but it will push you in every other way you can imagine. If after a short time you can't handle the **** anymore take your CNA license to a hospital.

Hope that helps!

 

[lilmo]

I agree with MsAlaska. CNA can be a very draining job, both physically and emotionally. At the home where I worked, there were never enough CNAs to go around. You were forced to work as fast as you could to get your job done and didn't have time for pleasurable interactions with the residents. I enjoyed the experience, but definitely could not make a career of it. I only got paid $8.50, but I come from a small town.

As for the class, I had to foot the bill myself ($200). Most nursing homes will only pay for it if you work for them a minimum of a year. I didn't want to make that obligation.

Best of luck!

 

[Speedy]

Horseradish99 got it right - it really depends on where you work. I am a nurse assistant at a patient care home where the residents are all living with HIV/AIDS amongst many other problems. I am responsible for giving them their medications, one of which is a subcutaneous injection twice a day. Its really cool because I have learned more about HIV and how people cope with it than I ever learned in any class. Thank goodness most of them are able to take care of themselves 98% of the time. But I have had my share of "code browns" to deal with. I've seen the more hard core scut work done in nursing homes.

Can't help you with certification. I challenged the state exam because I am already certified as an EMT-Intermediate. PS. The EMT job is way more hands on and beneficial than the NA job!

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

Emt >>> Cna

 

[UNOStudent01]

Have you considered working as a phlebotomist? I worked full time as one for two summers of my undergrad and learned A LOT. After some experience, I was allowed to respond to traumas, ER, and codes. it gave me useful patient interaction w/out having to clean up human waste 🙂