Description: Provide basic patient care under direction of nursing staff. Perform duties, such as feed, bathe, dress, groom, or move patients, or change linens.

Sample of reported job titles: CNA (Certified Nurse Aide), CNA (Certified Nursing Assistant ), Caregiver, Nurse's Aide, Nursing Aid, Nursing Assistant, PCA (Patient Care Assistant), Patient Care Technician, Psychiatric Attendant, Resident Assistant

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Tasks

• Answer patients' call signals.
• Turn and reposition bedridden patients, alone or with assistance, to prevent bedsores.
• Observe patients' conditions, measuring and recording food and liquid intake and output and vital signs, and report changes to professional staff.
• Feed patients who are unable to feed themselves.
• Provide patients with help walking, exercising, and moving in and out of bed.
• Provide patient care by supplying and emptying bed pans, applying dressings and supervising exercise routines.
• Bathe, groom, shave, dress, or drape patients to prepare them for surgery, treatment, or examination.

Knowledge

• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

Skills

• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Service Orientation - Actively looking for ways to help people.

Abilities

• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.

Interests

• Social - Social occupations frequently involve working with, communicating with, and teaching people. These occupations often involve helping or providing service to others.
• Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
• Conventional - Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Work Styles

• Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
• Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
• Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
• Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
• Self Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.

Tools and Technology

Tools used in this occupation:

• Blood pressure cuff kits - Blood pressure measurement cuffs
• Canes or cane accessories - Walking canes
• Clinical hydraulic lifts or accessories - Hydraulic lifts
• Clinical trapeze bars - Clinical trapeze traction bars
• Crutches or crutch accessories - Crutches

Technology used in this occupation:

• Calendar and scheduling software - Scheduling software
• Data base user interface and query software - Database software
• Medical software - Medical records software
• Word processing software - Word processing software

Note: This occupational description highlights important information for this occupation (ie, Knowledges, Skills, and Abilities). Additional detail is available from: O*NET OnLine.

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