Welcome to the 'Writings' section of Nursing Assistant Central. This section is devoted to writings by and about Nursing Assistants and other Health Care professionals; including poetry, essays, opinions and testimonies.
If you have anything you would like to contribute to this site, please email me. Be sure to include all relevant information, such as title, author, and copyright. Please note that if an article is submitted directly to me, it must be in text format only; no attachments will be opened. Thank you.
Hidden Treasure
by Bobbette Bergen, RN, ADON
Why, in the spring of your life
Would you choose a work so unlikely?
Jobs less demanding--more pleasant by far
to the mind, the back and the senses
Are plentiful here in our urbane town
Where opportunities and choices surround.
To an onlooker--the grueling tasks, hectic pace, and abuses
Are unpleasant, defy logic. "Why would you do this?"
To an insider--the odors, struggles, seemingly thankless duties
Are a way of life, a job description.
But in caring for each resident, beyond the myriad little tasks,
Sickness and sorrows and losses confound.
I've seen you with bite marks and bruises from kicking,
Sent you for tetanus when skin was broken.
Observed your kindness to families wrought with guilt,
Watched and felt anguish and pride in repsonses
That kept on giving and caring, even in the backlash of
Cursing or crying or yelling or dying.
Like cream that rises to the top,
Your energy, youthful and strong, rebounds and excels all around.
When your laughter explodes at a humorous phrase,
Your eyes see and ears hear not what was said, but intended.
As though veiled, the real goal of your work is hidden.
Rewards not measured by monetary standards or others' esteem
Are realized in your recognition of the work you do.
Sharing yourselves in a caring way at the end of life's journey
With remarkable people whose lives are now obscured by infirmity.
Obvious? No, the treasure is hidden,
And you have discovered the treasure.
But to those of us who know the work that you do,
You are the treasure
...................
Ms. Bergen, now retired, was Assistant Director of Nursing at Manor Care Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Boulder Colorado
Tree Analogy
Connie Trendel, CNA
Nursing facilities are like trees...
The residents are the leaves...
growing, changing and falling away from the tree.
The branches are the homes,
giving the leaves a safe, nurturing environment to do their growing,
the support staff are the limbs,
they keep the branches sturdy,
the administration is the trunk of the tree, supporting the limbs and branches.
I'm sure you are wondering where nursing assistants' fit into this analogy... we are the roots.
Leaves fall, branches and limbs may break in a strong wind, you can even cut into the trunk of a tree but if the roots are strong, growth will continue.
Have you ever seen a tree that has a root disease?
The leaves will die without the nourishment the roots provide. The limbs, branches and trunk will remain for a while but they too eventually die.
We are the roots of every facility.
In the past, we've been called the 'lowman'.
I guess we are, after all, roots are the lowest part of the tree...also the most vital.
The Nursing Home
Walter Westfall
My tears flow like rain,
When I think of my mother dear,
If only I had her near,
To take away my pain.
When she was in the nursing home,
It was sad to see her there,
Visiting was more than I could bear,
I so wanted her to come back home.
But she was so ill and weak,
She couldn't come home again,
She was so frail and thin,
And in the end unable to speak.
Within the nursing home door,
It was a world apart,
It nearly broke my heart,
I didn't want to go there anymore.
The people there looked so sad,
The suffering it was so great,
They were in an unfortunate state,
And with my mother there I felt so bad.
But the nursing home nurses were kind,
Treating my mother well each day,
Thus during my mother's stay,
Their kindness did ease my mind.
Be Gentle With Those in Your Care
Brenda Rice
Did you ever wake up feeling confused and out of place?
It's not a feeling that is very nice.
Not knowing where you are or what day it would be.
Struggling with your thoughts...trying to see.
Try to imagine that feeling...never going away.
Trying to find your place every single day.
Trying so hard to remember why
and the only answer you get is a sigh.
Daylight is here and it's not so bad
but then...why oh why are you sad?
No one around you seems to know.
They don't seem to know the places you go.
If only you could find some face you knew
Just what would you do if this happens to you?
Step into my shoes for only a day
Perhaps you will know why I run away.
What would you do if you could no longer tie your shoe
And when it's time to dress you don't know what to do
What if you didn't know when or how to shower
A task so great that perhaps you too would cower.
If I strike out and seem to be mean
Perhaps it is over things that can't be seen.
Step into my shoes for only a day
Maybe then you will see why I act this way.
So please remember as you care for me today
To treat me with kindness and love in every way.
Be patient and tender as you guide me along my way.
Step into my shoes for only a day.
My Favorite Days
Lisa Cohee, 2001
My favorite days begin as such
With a bit of sunshine and lives to touch
My favorite days consist of this
A sweet elderly lady who asks for a kiss
A woman who has been through so much pain
who simply needs me to fetch her cane
An elderly man, so quiet and lonely
asking "Won't you come sit and talk to me?"
A woman who speaks only once in a while
but with a glance she says plenty
to make me smile
A woman who seeks such independence
she says "I'll do it myself"
but when I stop by
She calls me her "Angel"
and I could just cry.
A man down the hall, with a grin on his face
he pokes fun and laughs much
when my presence I do grace
A woman who has suffered a stroke
but her spirit and spunk has never been broke
asks how my day is and more often than not
will offer a hug or a sweet little poke
The many men and women who live where I work all of them special, with or without quirks
They make me smile in one way or another
they keep me going and make me stronger
Some are gone now and some will stay
I love them all and often I pray
that I can find time in my busy day
to help them all
in even the smallest way...
this is all part of
My Favorite Days
Just a Nurses Aide
Author Unknown
Someone asked me what I do for a living. I said, "I'm a nurses aide. I work in a nursing home." The person made a face and quickly changed the subject.
A lot of people don't understand my job. Many people wouldn't do my job. "Not for all the money in the world," they say. Neither would I. There is something special about this job. My patients need me. They really depend on me. I not only care for them; I care about them as well.
Being a nurses aide is not a glamorous job! It's a very important one though. I take pride in my job and in my work. There is much to learn. I try to improve my skills and myself. Things do get hectic. Sometimes the call-bells seem to go off all at once. Family members ask me to do this or that. They all want priority. I do the best I can.
My work is the kind of work many sons or daughters can't or won't do! Yet somebody has to take care of the sick and the old. So, I bathe and shower my patients. I want them to be fresh and clean. I comb and brush their hair. I want them to look nice. Their hands shake and tremble so I have to cut their food and help them eat. I want them to get the proper nourishment. Now do you understand why my job is so important? These people really need me. They depend on me. That's why I feel I am a very special person. Even though I am "Just a Nurse's Aide".
..................................
~1985 M&M Associates, Erie, Pennsylvania
All Rights Reserved
We are More Than Just CNA's
Christina Hall, CNA - 2001
To patient's family members who think we are not doing our job.
To the facility administrators who think the CNA are worthless
To nurses who think CNA's are nothing more than a CNA
To the public who view CNA's as the lowest form of healthcare provider.
I am here to tell you we are more
We are taking care of ten to sometimes 15 patients a day
Sometimes we do not even take a break because we simply do not have the time for one
We are someone else's child, grandchild, sibling, niece, nephew, husband, wife, and mother
We treat our patients with the care and compassion that we would want our family members to be treated with.
But there is only so much one person can do for ten or more people in an eight to twelve hour shift.
For those people who think CNA's are not important I am here to tell you we are the backbone of the healthcare facility.
I also challenge those of you who think a CNA is just a CNA to do our job for a day
I doubt you will have the same attitude.
Certified Nurse Assistant Prayer
Steve & Shari Allen
As I enter into my place of calling
I ask for strength as I help those in needing
Hide my tears for the sick and aging
and let my smile be the hope they're seeking.
guide my hands as they do for them
The things they cannot do, and we take for granted
Allow my eyes to see those things
that make my stay with them a blessing
Provide the words I need to speak
To let them know I love them so.
As I do my work throughout the day
It is for my residents that I stay,
and for my residents that I pray.
..................
Note from the authors of this prayer:
"Created and written 11-23-97. It is now the official prayer of the CNA's, as we know of no prayer ever written for them"
What Do You See?
Author Unknown
What do you see people, what do you see?
What are you thinking when you are looking at me?
A crabby ole woman, not very wise, uncertain of self, with far-away eyes?
One who dribbles her food and seems not to care; stares at nothing, reaches for things not there?
You think I don't notice, the things that you do, how you complain, cause I can't find my shoe?
You look at my hair and see a big mess, and always you notice the stains on my dress.
Do you see an ole lady who resists when you pull...or just a crab...just a fool?
Your will, you say, has to be mine...bathing and changing, and when I will dine.
Is this what you're thinking, is this what you see?
THEN OPEN YOUR EYES, AND TAKE A LOOK AT ME.
I once was a baby, snug in mother's womb, and once was a child...cleaning her room.
I played hide and seek and dolls with my sister, laughed with mother and called men, Mister.
A young girl of sixteen with wings on her feet, dreaming of Prince Charming...hoping we'd meet.
At twenty God sent to me from above, my heart throb...Prince Charming...the man that I loved.
I was a lovely bride with stars in my eyes, our vows we exchanged and promised no lies.
At twenty-five, I had children of my own, devoted to husband...spreading love in my home.
At thirty the kids were growing fast, family ties were strong with love that would last.
At forty my children were grown and no longer at home, my husband beside me...the kids I could phone.
At fifty, once more, children at play...babysitting grandkids, that was spending the day.
My love and I were happy as larks, but then one day my life turned dark.
The love of my life, became ill, and now he was dead; I looked at the future, I shuddered with dread.
My young were all grown moving here to there; I was all alone and getting grey hair.
I'm an old woman now and nature is cruel...some of the things I do, makes me look like a fool.
I walk much slower, my knees pop and crack; I need help getting up...I'm down in my back.
My teeth are false...my eyes can't see; my ears can't hear...what you say to me.
My skin, once smooth, is now wrinkled and dry...I see the disgust as I look in your eye.
Once proud of my beauty and good taste for dress; I wet on myself...oh what a mess.
I seem to be losing my mind, I no longer remember;is this May, June, July, or November?
The words coming out of my mouth...don't make any sense; I once was smart...I'm really not dense
My smile is gone, my families in pain; when they see me like this...wishing for 'mom' again.
I won't be back...oh don't you see? YOU AND I ARE LOSING ME.
Alzheimer's is cruel...it's taking me away; please don't forget me...hear what I say.
I was...I am...a lovely lady you see; if only you'd look...deep inside...FOR ME.
