When I was first approached by a social worker to become a parent Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) for my son Nicholas, I brushed it off. I didn’t like the idea of getting paid to take care of my son. After all that’s not why I had kids in the first place. But then it was recommended to me once more a couple of months later. Nicholas was in the hospital for Failure to Thrive… again. She said something I’d never realized before. “You can’t work because you have to take care of him.”

She was right. I had recently quit my job because I had two boys with special needs. They required so much attention, not to mention all the doctor appointments, procedures, and hospital stays. I couldn’t do both anymore, so my husband and I made the decision that I would stay home with them.

Soon after I quit my job we struggled financially, so I started looking into different companies that offered parent CNA programs. Colorado has a number of health care companies that offer them. It’s the only state that does parent CNA, although other states have things that are similar. And it can be any family member that needs care, not just children

After I chose a company one of the nurses came to my house and ran an assessment tool to determine how many hours Nicholas qualified for to take care of him. Basically comparing him to his peers and what they’re doing at his age. He qualified so I went through all the employment paperwork, background check, and drug testing. I chose to take the nursing classes online because that allowed me to work at my own pace since I had the boys at home and being 8 months pregnant with my daughter Grace.

On my own time, I read the chapters in the book then took the tests online. I only had to go into the school on lab days to practice the skills for the written and skills exams that I’d eventually take for the state test. Once I passed all the online tests, I did clinicals for two days at a health care center. After clinicals I took the state test. Now, I chart everything I do for Nicholas every day that includes feeding, bathing, toileting, and dressing and get paid for it.

It was weird going back to school again, especially for the health care field, something I never thought I’d be interested in. I really liked learning about the medical field and I made some really good friends in the process. I had already appreciated nurses so much, but I respect them even more after some of the things I learned in class and experienced during clinicals.

Being a CNA for Nicholas allows me to understand his medical complexities so much more. I’m CPR certified now which helps me be more confident in taking care of him and all my kids for that matter. I learned a lot about different disabilities and how to react in emergency situations. The income isn’t a whole lot, but it definitely helps.

In addition I believe it’s brought Nicholas and I closer together. I understand his wants and needs better than anyone. There was one point when he had so much therapy that I felt like other people were taking care of him more than me. Being a CNA for him has helped in that aspect with the help of dropping a few things from our busy schedule.

I hope this is a temporary solution. In a few years I hope Nicholas can go to the bathroom by himself. I wish that he’ll sleep better. I know that he will eventually walk on his own. And of course long term I hope he eats by mouth. I pray that he can be more independent and will be able to take care of himself. For now, I’m thankful I live in a state that offers a program like this. It’s been really good for our family and is the best option for us.