Certified Nursing Assistant Training and Education
Healthcare is a growing job economy for people who want to enter a stable career with multiple benefits. With the world’s elderly population rapidly increasing, the number of people who are able to wok becomes somewhat limited and scarce. As such, many people start off in life as young and able entry level professionals who are able to cater to the needs of an ever growing population. The job market for healthcare never seems to dwindle as nobody is immune to sickness. Certified nursing assistants are entry level careers for those who want to work in hospices, hospitals, nursing homes and long term care facilities.
The work that certified nursing assistants do varies from state to state. Many hospitals allow them to work at patient’s bedsides where they are able to aid the patient’s recovery. Many times, nursing assistants are called upon at a moments notice to work in other areas of the hospital such as transporting a patient with the nurse to another facility or performing cardiopulmonary on a patient who has just coded.
A large part of their day is consumed by taking good care of patients who are unable to care for themselves. Under the direct supervision of the registered nurse and licensed practical nurse, they take the vital signs of a patient and report any sudden drops or spikes on the temperature, pulse, or blood pressure. For certified nursing assistants in the morning shift, they basically help the patient perform activities such as bathing, brushing, eating, changing clothes and exercising. Their goal is to aid a patient into performing these activities independently by providing minimal assistance only.
In order to become a successful nursing assistant, one has to have maximal strength and endurance. It can be challenging to carry a patient twice your size to the bathroom or turn an immobile patient frequently so no bedsores are present. During such challenging tasks, remembering the basics from one’s certified nursing assistant training days can help a lot. Proper body mechanics are employed to maximize the strength from various parts of the body with minimal effort so that turning, positioning and even carrying a patient wont cause unnecessary muscle pains.
One can find certified nursing assistant training in community or junior colleges. Even the Red Cross offers certified nursing assistant training programs. These training programs usually last for weeks to months, depending on how extensive the course outline will be. In the Red Cross, the course is taught by a qualified registered nurse who will teach you all about the basics in CPR, positioning, and body mechanics. Some medical facilities will offer to train you to become a certified nursing assistant provided that you work at their hospital for a period of time. Once you finish a course, you can get your certification by taking a written and practical test. The certification exam depends entirely on the state you want to work in; some schools offer these exams on their grounds, while some states require you to take the national certification conducted by the National Nurse Aide Assessment Program.