The benevolent Florence Nightingale lives on to be the role model for quite a lot. If you are one among them who love serving people, then the profile of a certified nursing assistant (CNA) would suit you well. A certificate and a degree in the course are likely to boost the chances of your being selected for jobs.
With the improvement in the healthcare sector, there is an increasing demand for the role of CNAs. It will kickstart your career in the healthcare sector, with tremendous scope of being promoted to higher levels. This calls for no prior experience. The completion of the course and the experience garnered during the practical sessions of the training can suffice the requirements.
The CNAs may get directly absorbed from the facilities at which they undertook the training programme or may be hired after interview. The nationwide demand for CNAs has increased the salary and the sectors holds immense potential for improvement.
CNA JOB DESCRIPTION
The healthcare industry, in spite of featuring qualified physicians and technicians, may stumble if the nursing sector fails. The CNAs serve as one of the fundamental keystones of the healthcare sector. The basic role of the CNA is to provide basic care to patients, under the supervision of registered nurses.
The CNAs need to be compassionate and should be able to communicate will all patient groups, bathe them, read vital signs, handle emergency, provide first aid and deliver caring service to them. CNAs also work with medical technology, like billing software, health information software, medical record charting software, etc.
The CNAs serve as a vector, conveying important messages from patients to registered nurses and doctors. The duties of a CNA also include transporting patients to operation theatre, lifting them on their beds, setting up equipment when asked by the doctor, examine patients for bruises, blood in urine or faeces, change and sanitise bedsheets and such other core functions. Sometimes the CNAs might also be asked to administer medication to patients.
CNA JOBS AT HOSPITALS
Hospital jobs dominate the field when it comes to the list of CNA jobs. They require CNAs to come with a bit of experience and expertise. You may begin your career as a volunteer, gain recommendations and endorsements and then shift to a hospital service.
The pay and benefits provided by the hospitals are lucrative. Although at the entry level, the salary may not be too high, with experience and seniority the pay increases. A CNA may start the career at a hospital under the supervision of RN’s, may be paired with a single nurse and may be given the duty to observe a group of patients.
A CNA may have to work in a hospital under the job profile of a technician and the duties will be to read vital signs, take care of catheters, maintain personal hygiene of the patient and the room, transport them to the medication room or operation theater or escort families and help them while the patient is being discharged.
CNA’s SALARIES
Satisfaction of service is a reward in itself. Apart from it, the US Bureau of Labour Statistics has projected the average annual wage of CNAs to be around $68530. However there is variation in the salary based on several factors. If the CNAs are working for government hospitals, local departments of health, Department of Veteran Affairs, they are known to earn slightly more than those recruited in other healthcare organisations like state, local or private hospitals. Nursing assistants in government organisation can earn around $73800 annually, which is about $3750 more than other healthcare facilities.
The demand for care providers and compassionate nursing service is higher in populated cities than in smaller towns and rural areas. However, sometimes even remote areas may be in the need for more trained nursing service. While CNA service does not generally require any prior service, one may heighten the chances of being selected for a job by gaining previous experience in the field. In such cases, the initial salary might be a bit higher as compared to others. At an entry level, CNAs may get paid on an hourly basis, with the salary range varying from $18.24 to $30.02 per hour.
