What is a Nursing Assistant

¿What is a nursing assistant? A nursing assistant is in charge of taking care of the health care of patients of different ages, being supervised by a professional nurse who must be kept informed of the state in which these patients are.

Whether it is home care or public or private hospitals, where there is a need for personal care, nursing assistants cannot be absent, so if you are passionate about taking care of people's health status, then stay and learn more. about this profession.

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What does a nursing assistant do?

Although nursing assistants perform basic functions of patient health care, these are often a key point between professional nurses and patients.


Nursing assistants must perform tasks such as:

  • Accompany elderly patients to go to the bathroom.
  • Prepare the beds where the patients will be cared for.
  • Maintain cleanliness of the patient's treatment area.
  • Keep clothing in order.
  • Provide food to patients.
  • Weigh the patients
  • Taking vital signs such as temperature, pulse, blood pressure, etc.
  • Sell ​​the sick.
  • Provide catheter care.
  • Document and report on the health status of patients to the nurse in charge.

There are patients who present conditions that prevent them from moving from one place to another of their own free will, so the nursing assistant must proceed with helping the patient with a walker and prevent them from getting hurt by an unwanted fall.

In many cases the auxiliary nurse must assist patients with bathing, diapering, and general patient hygiene.


Sometimes more than one nursing assistant is required in order to lift the patient to place him on another mobile stretcher that will allow the transfer of the patient from one room to another within the clinic or hospital.

What does it take to be a nursing assistant?

If you want to become a nursing assistant, it is important that in order to be aligned with this professional profile you have the following skills or qualities:

  • Good interpersonal and communication skills: An essential quality is knowing how to communicate messages clearly in order to present in detail the needs of patients at specific times with other health personnel.
  • Be patient: Being patient when performing routine tasks such as grooming, feeding, and bathing patients can lead to stressful situations, so maintaining a professional posture at all times is essential.
  • Physical resistance: As we mentioned previously, patients may not be able to move easily and help them get out of bed, move them from one side to the other and, above all, keep in mind that most of the time, as an assistant you will be working standing up.

  • Amiability: Being kind to patients at all times and treating them with sympathy is one of the main characteristics that should be part of the nursing assistant.
  • Touch: Patients may have pain in some areas of their body, so knowing where and how to touch is necessary to avoid suffering for the patient.
  • Teamwork: Usually you will be with co-workers, so it is necessary to maintain a synchrony for the successful care of the patients' health.
  • Sense of responsibility: Adequately fulfilling each of the tasks that must be performed and with a vocation should be the priority of the nursing assistant.
  • Ability to work under pressure: On many occasions, emergency contingencies may arise, so responding quickly and effectively to requests from the charge nurse is vital.

Nursing assistant courses

For the exercise of this profession, it is an essential requirement to receive adequate training and for this reason we show you a list of auxiliary nursing courses, taking into account that if you want to specialize in a specific area, it will be necessary to go through an additional training process:

Conclution

Medical personnel will always be necessary and nursing assistants cannot be absent. To practice this profession you need a vocation for patient care, not to mention that training is essential in case you want to get a quick job as a personal care assistant.

✅How long does the nursing assistant course last?

Nursing assistant certification programs can last from 4 to 12 weeks.

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