Job Details

Certified Nurse Assistant

Job Description

Overview

The Certified Nursing Assistant cares for residents under the direction and supervision of a registered nurse or a licensed practical/vocational nurse. The position requires patience, compassion and a desire to care for the frail elderly in a gentle and empathetic manner.

Qualifications

• Must be a Certified Nursing Assistant in good standing with the certification board or is a graduate of a state approved nursing assistant training program and passed a state approved competency examination (written and skills) within 120 days of employment; name entered into state nurse aide registry.

• High School Graduate/GED preferred.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Must be able to express self adequately in written and oral communication and to communicate effectively in an interdisciplinary care setting with residents, families, and staff members.

Essential Functions and Responsibilities

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each key function satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the key functions.

Care and services:

• Takes and records vital signs.
• Measures and records height and weight.
• Calculates and records weight gain or loss.
• Calculates and records fluid intake and output.
• Cares for the resident’s environment.
• Recognizes abnormal changes in body functioning and the importance of reporting such changes to a supervisor.
• Cares for residents when death is imminent.
• Makes routine rounds on each assigned resident every two hours.
• Bathes residents.
• Assists with grooming, including mouth care.
• Dresses residents.
• Toilets residents.
• Assists with eating and hydration.
• Uses proper feeding techniques.
• Calculates and records percentage of meal eaten.
• Observes resident’s skin when giving care and reports changes to licensed nurse.
• Provides skin care.
• Transfers, positions and turns residents.
• Meets resident’s mental health and social service needs.
• Modifies own behavior in response to residents’ behaviors.
• Is aware of developmental tasks associated with the aging process.
• Knows how to respond to residents’ behaviors.
• Allows residents to make personal choices.
• Provides and reinforces other behavior consistent with the residents’ dignity.
• Uses the residents’ families as a source of emotional support for the resident.
• Contributes to the resident’s assessment (MDS/RAPs) and the plan of care.
• Provides nursing rehabilitation/restorative nursing services

1. Promote resident’s ability to adopt and adjust to living as independently as possible.
2. Trains the resident in self-care according to the resident’s abilities.
3. Trains the resident in the use of assistive devices for transferring, walking and mobility, dressing and grooming, eating and swallowing.
4. Maintains range of motion; proper turning and positioning in bed and chair.
5. Assists with bowel and bladder retraining.
6. Instructs the resident on the care and use of prosthetic and orthotic devices.
7. Incorporates training and skill practice activities, which include repetition, physical or verbal cueing and task segmentation.

• Cares for residents with Dementia

1. Knows how to respond to residents’ behaviors.
2. Allows residents to make personal choices.
3. Provides and reinforces other behavior consistent with residents’ dignity.
4. Uses the resident’s families as a source of emotional support for the resident.
5. Demonstrates a basic understanding of behavior and functional symptoms associated with dementia by providing interventions and treatments to help reduce these symptoms.
6. Uses modification in the presentation of activities of daily living to maintain and maximize resident competencies and functions.
7. Uses effective intervention techniques to address behavioral concerns.
8. Acts as a facilitator for activity programming.
9. Demonstrates effective communication techniques for persons with dementia.

• Provides non-resident care including but not limited to:
  1. Washing wheelchairs.
  2. Cleaning soiled utility areas.
  3. Cleaning nurse’s station.
  4. Cleaning shower and whirlpool rooms.
  5. Cleaning kitchen areas on the nursing unit.

Resident Rights:  Promotes and protects resident’s rights; assists residents to make informed decisions; treats residents with dignity and respect; protects resident’s personal belongings; reports suspected abuse or neglect; avoids the need for physical restraints in accordance with current professional standards; supports independent expression, choice and decision-making consistent with applicable law and regulation.

Leadership:  Demonstrates willingness to try new tasks; generates new ideas for change; evaluates and recognizes priorities; challenges others to learn; keeps current and integrates new information; communicates and models organization values; fosters high performance.

Process Improvement: Applies process improvement methods and techniques and identifies processes for improvement in daily work.

Environment of Care: Demonstrates understanding of fire and emergency procedures; participates in fire and disaster drills; demonstrates understanding of safety and security procedures; applies safety and security precautions; demonstrates understanding of hazardous materials plan; demonstrates proper use of equipment.

Infection Control: Applies handwashing principles during daily work; demonstrates understanding of isolation precautions; recognizes signs and symptoms of infection and complies with the employee health program; demonstrates understanding of the process for identifying and handling infectious waste; maintains personal hygiene; complies with OSHA standards in the work place; and demonstrates understanding of cross contamination.

Information Management: Enters or records data timely and accurately; protects confidentiality of resident information (in accordance with HIPAA policies); protects data against loss or destruction; reports suspected violation of security/confidentiality issues.

Continuing Education: Attends inservice training programs; attends continuing education required for maintenance of certification.

Physical Demands: The physical demands described here represent those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential function of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, walk, use hands or fingers, reach with hands and arms, talk or hear.  The employee must be able to assist to lift and/or transfer residents weighing between 100 to 250 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision and peripheral vision.