Christmas Gifts for the Nursing Assistant in Your Life

Do you know someone who does the same type of work that I do? That actually enjoys it, I mean, not someone who'd rather not be reminded of their work?

Well get ready to impress 'em with your amazingly intuitive knowledge of what he or she would like to have for Christmas this year!

1. My FAVORITE EVER under-scrubs shirt: made by Skechers Medical Scrubs. I realize that the stock photo looks like I'm trying to get you all to wear a teal leopard-print shirt under your scrubs, but I promise this is not the case. It comes in different colors (I have it in dark blue, want it in white as well) and the pattern on it comes from little burnout words like "trust, hope, care" and little daisies. Reserve for the lady CNA's in your life, probably. Why I love it so much? It's warm enough to make me a little more comfortable when I've gotta leave the house before 6am in December, makes my unisex scrub top look a little more feminine, and protects my forearms from pinches and scratches (from residents, not coworkers!) without being bulky or overly hot to wear all shift. LOVE IT!


2. Travel/Sample size bottles of hand sanitizer. I know a lot of facilities have sanitizer stations bolted to the wall, but mine doesn't because that'd be unsafe for our residents (who might drink or eat it). So I like having a little bottle that fits in my pocket. I don't know if Germ-X is actually moisturizing, but it definitely smells the best of any of the brands I've used. Lemony, not flowery.


3. The only thing on this list I haven't actually tried yet, but am DYING to. Lots of people in the nursing homes/AL facilities I've been to have started wearing those Skechers Shape-Ups, and say they really are more comfortable for being on your feet for hours at a time. They're also really ugly and have thick soles, making them easy to fall off of. Same with the Masai Barefoot Technology shoes, which are pretty much the same deal for twice the price. That's why I'm drooling over these New Balance toning shoes that claim to do the same things, but with less risk for those (like myself) that fall over more than your average bear. Plus look how dang cute the black and pink ones are. AND THEY'RE SYNTHETIC, NOT LEATHER!! Can you feel my little Polly heart pitter pattering?


4. A home cooked meal. Seriously, we work really hard and get really hungry. I'd freak out with joy if someone gave me a frozen casserole or something that I just had to heat up and eat. Maybe that's just because I'm vegan and therefore end up cooking for myself 99% of the time. But even omnivorous CNA's would probably appreciate getting to eat something tasty and healthy that someone else cooked. Especially if it's free. We love free food. We're underpaid. And hungry! (One of our resident's daughter brought in multiple 3-foot-long subs for each shift and they disappeared so fast you'd think a football team had packed 'em away. But no, it was my coworkers, including the teensy tiny ladies. They can EAT.)

5. A Sappy Christmas Ornament; if he or she likes their work, and especially if he or she has ambitions beyond nursing assistant. I got teary-eyed over this one at Hallmark at the mall tonight. Yeah, really. Probably more to do with my delight over finding out I can become an RN faster than I thought (more on that later) but still. If your NA is a sap like me, get them something sweet like this. I know, I'm a freak, but I would love having one where I can look back and go "oh, that's from the year I realized I wanted to be an RN!". Okay, I'm seriously considering deleting all this now. But whatever. Almost no one reads this anyway, right?