The Role Of A Certified Nurse Assistant

Certified Nurse Assistants, also known as C.N.A.’s, provide direct care to patients in a variety of health-care settings. A certified nurse assistant is required to complete a state regulated training program and must then pass a written test as well as a test of care giving skills. The length of time spent in training varies from program to program but the average time is about six weeks.

A Certified Nurse Assistant’s job description varies depending on the location, for example, a certified nurse assistant working in a nursing home or long-term care center will be required to do substantially more work than a C.N.A., working in a hospital setting.

Regardless of the locale, a Certified Nurse Assistant is trained and required to perform certain duties. A C.N.A. is the direct care giver in a nursing facility, meaning that patients who require more assistance will need to wait for the C.N.A. in order to have certain needs taken care of. The main duties are assisting with ADL’s, or activities of daily living, which include

§ Dressing (according to patients' needs, ranging from minimal assistance to totally dependent)

§ Bathing (bed baths, tub baths, showers)

§ Feeding (serving meals, physically feeding patients who are unable to do so themselves)

§ Toileting (assisting with bedpans & urinals, help to the bathroom, provide incontinent care for patients who need it)

§ Vital signs (Blood pressure, pulse, etc)

§ Catheter caring (emptying, upkeep of Intake & Output sheets when necessary)

§ Answering call lights in a timely fashion

Other duties include assisting patients with ambulation, when needed; range of Motion Exercises, as prescribed by physical therapy; and assisting residents in wheelchairs. A lot of heavy lifting at times, although most facilities are becoming “lift free”, which mean there are mechanical devices used to transfer patients to and from bed.

Certified Nurse Assistants are also required to do some light housekeeping in making beds and keeping the patients' rooms and belongings neat and organized; ensuring that bedridden patients are turned at least every two hours, to ensure comfort and to prevent bedsores; reporting all changes, physical and mental, of the patients to the nurse;

Post Mortem Care is also required but it is usually to make sure that a deceased patient is prepared for when the undertaker picks them up. Most nursing facilities do not have a morgue, so expired patients are left in their room, with the curtain pulled for privacy and the AC up high.

Safety awareness, keeping an eye out for wanderers and watching for potentially dangerous situations are also roles of a C.N.A. Charting and daily documentation on the care provided to each patient; and anything else that seems out of the ordinary.

Certified Nurse Assistants are required to lift patients, assist a patient that is falling and carry heavy medical equipment. They should have the physical dexterity to perform skills that require fine motor movement. Basic observations are made by the CNA; therefore they should possess the senses of sight, hearing, smell, and touch. Keep in mind that a C.N.A. will be responsible for at least six to twelve patients a shift, so good time management is also key.

Certified Nursing Assistants can be found in nursing homes, hospitals, adult day health centers, assisted living facilities, even personal homes. Wherever there is a need for personal care, Certified Nursing Assistants are the ones who, for the most part, perform the most basic needs for patients, young and old alike. They work under the supervision of a charge nurse. Since C.N.A.’s have extensive daily contact with each patient, they are the keys to providing vital information on the patients' changing conditions to the nurse.

A certified nurse assistant’s job is not just physical in nature. This is a position that requires compassion and empathy and a desire to make people feel comfortable and happy. Most nursing home residents suffer from depression and sometimes dementia, and a C.N.A is sometimes the only human contact that many of these people have to look forward to. Besides all of the above a certified nurse assistant needs a good sense of humor and a good pair of walking shoes.