Different Places That CNAs Can Work

Many people become a CNA, or certified nursing assistant, to get on the fast track to working in the medical field. With a relatively inexpensive and short certification process, CNAs have a wide variety of employment options available to them.

CNAs often start out at group homes or supportive living homes. Companies around the United States provide around-the-clock care to adults with special needs, such as those with Down Syndrome, cerebral palsy, or mental delays. These companies often pay less than other places that hire CNAs. This is due to the fact that job duties can be performed by people without a CNA licensed, such as Personal Care Workers or Direct Care Workers. However, they have very flexible schedules and are a good entry-level job for CNAs.

One of the most popular places for a CNA to work is a nursing home. Nursing homes only hire CNAs, unlike group and supportive living homes. CNAs working in nursing homes need to be very fast in administering medications, delivering food, changing sheets, and either changing their patients' briefs or helping them to the bathroom. Nursing homes hire CNAs for every shift, including day shifts, evening shifts, and overnight shifts. This is great for CNAs who are going back to school to get a higher-level nursing degree. However, nursing homes also require that their CNAs work weekend and holiday shifts.

Hospitals, to a limited degree, hire CNAs in various areas of the hospital. This is particularly true for large hospitals that see lots of patients. CNAs can do the menial tasks that RNs and doctors are too busy for, such as helping patients to the bathroom, doing basic charting tasks, and passing out medications to patients. There is considerably less flexibility in hospital CNA shifts than nursing home CNA shifts, since there is not such a great need for CNAs at hospitals. In addition, hospitals may only hire CNAs with a considerable amount of experience. In exchange for inflexible shifts and more stringent hiring requirements, hospitals often pay a considerable amount more than nursing homes or group homes.

A final and little-known CNA job opportunity is working privately for people. People with medical problems who live on their own may hire CNAs privately to help them out on a regular basis. These jobs are the highest-paying of all CNA jobs, but they can be very hard to find. In addition, most people will only hire a CNA that has several years of experience. They also want to hire CNAs that they feel comfortable with, since they will often be alone with the CNA for several hours at a time. CNAs who want to find private CNA jobs can look for job listings in the newspaper, online, and on Craigslist.