Nursing assistants have some of the most difficult jobs in healthcare. They are tasked with the everyday healthcare management of individuals on a highly personal basis. They do a lot of the grunt work, including ambulating, transferring, bathing, feeding, cleaning, and much more.
Nursing assistants provide basic care to patients in hospitals, long-term care facilities, nursing homes, hospice care, rehab centers, doctor's offices, and clinics. They visit residents as soon as they clock in to determine what should be done first and what the priorities are.
These assistants are extremely active and perform a lot of labor-intensive work. Since they transfer patients, many of them use belts and proper lifting techniques to avoid injury. They may be more prone to injures than workers in other jobs.
Simple range of motion exercises keep the patient's blood pumping and muscle tone. The aide will gently adduct limbs from the body and pay attention to signs of pain. They perform these exercises on the arms and legs on a regular basis.
Some nursing aides have the certification to dispense medicine. They pour out the proper dose or cut pills in half and give to patients. They carefully record all the medicines each patient takes.
Nursing aides take a lot of orders from both doctors, nurses, and practical nurses. They change sheets, refresh linens, tidy rooms, empty trash cans, and call for help if there are spills on on the floor. If a patient has had a stroke, the aide will feed the patient and make sure they don't choke on the food. They pay careful attention to the doctor's prescribed diet.
Aides assist with activities of dialing living, or ADLs. ADLs are defined as "the things we normally do...such as feeding ourselves, bathing, dressing, grooming, work, homemaking, and leisure." While basic categories of ADLs have been suggested, what specifically constitutes a particular ADL in a particular environment for a particular person may vary.
The most common ADLs are personal hygiene and grooming, dressing and undressing, bathing, feeding, brushing teeth, functional transfers, bowel and bladder management, and ambulation.
In nursing homes, aides and attendants are often the principal caregivers. They have more contact with residents than other members of the staff. Because some residents stay in a nursing home for months or years, aides and attendants may develop close, caring relationships with their patients.
It can difficult on aides when a patient gets very sick or passes away. This is one of the most difficult aspects of the job. Often after the patient passes the aide is charged with cleaning the body and prepping for transfer.
But the nursing aide jobs can be a very rewarding experience. Because care is one-on-one, the aide gets to follow every aspect of the patient's treatment. Every activity the aide performs assists in helping the patient get better. In the case of someone who is living in a long-term facility, the aide will help the patient retain some of their independence even though they need daily assistance.
