Nursing assistants provide or assist with basic care or support under the direction of onsite licensed nursing staff. Perform duties such as monitoring of health status, feeding, bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, or ambulation of patients in a health or nursing facility. May include medication administration and other health-related tasks. Includes nursing care attendants, nursing aides, and nursing attendants.
Turn or reposition bedridden patients.
Answer patient call signals, signal lights, bells, or intercom systems to determine patients' needs.
Feed patients or assist patients to eat or drink.
Measure and record food and liquid intake or urinary and fecal output, reporting changes to medical or nursing staff.
Provide physical support to assist patients to perform daily living activities, such as getting out of bed, bathing, dressing, using the toilet, standing, walking, or exercising.
Document or otherwise report observations of patient behavior, complaints, or physical symptoms to nurses.
Remind patients to take medications or nutritional supplements.
Review patients' dietary restrictions, food allergies, and preferences to ensure patient receives appropriate diet.
Undress, wash, and dress patients who are unable to do so for themselves.
Observe or examine patients to detect symptoms that may require medical attention, such as bruises, open wounds, or blood in urine.
Lift or assist others to lift patients to move them on or off beds, examination tables, surgical tables, or stretchers.
Supply, collect, or empty bedpans.
Communicate with patients to ascertain feelings or need for assistance or social and emotional support.
Record vital signs, such as temperature, blood pressure, pulse, or respiration rate, as directed by medical or nursing staff.
Gather information from caregivers, nurses, or physicians about patient condition, treatment plans, or appropriate activities.
Wash, groom, shave, or drape patients to prepare them for surgery, treatment, or examination.
Prepare or serve food trays.
Change bed linens or make beds.
Exercise patients who are comatose, paralyzed, or have restricted mobility.
Restock patient rooms with personal hygiene items, such as towels, washcloths, soap, or toilet paper.
Clean and sanitize patient rooms, bathrooms, examination rooms, or other patient areas.
Assist nurses or physicians in the operation of medical equipment or provision of patient care.
Record height or weight of patients.
Transport patients to treatment units, testing units, operating rooms, or other areas, using wheelchairs, stretchers, or moveable beds.
Collect specimens, such as urine, feces, or sputum.
Provide information, such as directions, visiting hours, or patient status information to visitors or callers.
Position or hold patients in position for surgical preparation.
Set up treating or testing equipment, such as oxygen tents, portable radiograph (x-ray) equipment, or overhead irrigation bottles, as directed by a physician or nurse.
Administer medications or treatments, such as catheterizations, suppositories, irrigations, enemas, massages, or douches, as directed by a physician or nurse.
Apply clean dressings, slings, stockings, or support bandages, under direction of nurse or physician.
Stock or issue medical supplies, such as dressing packs or treatment trays.
Explain medical instructions to patients or family members.
Transport specimens, laboratory items, or pharmacy items, ensuring proper documentation and delivery to authorized personnel.
Work Context
Contact With Others — 88% responded "Constant contact with others".
Work With Work Group or Team — 83% responded "Extremely important".
Importance of Being Exact or Accurate — 64% responded "Extremely important".
Spend Time Walking and Running — 62% responded "Continually or almost continually".
Spend Time Standing — 53% responded "Continually or almost continually".
Responsible for Others' Health and Safety — 72% responded "Very high responsibility".
Physical Proximity — 74% responded "Very close (near touching)".
Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets — 75% responded "Every day".
Exposed to Disease or Infections — 76% responded "Every day".
Coordinate or Lead Others — 49% responded "Extremely important".
Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People — 38% responded "Every day".
Assisting and Caring for Others — Providing personal assistance, medical attention, emotional support, or other personal care to others such as coworkers, customers, or patients.
Getting Information — Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates — Providing information to supervisors, co-workers, and subordinates by telephone, in written form, e-mail, or in person.
Documenting/Recording Information — Entering, transcribing, recording, storing, or maintaining information in written or electronic/magnetic form.
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships — Developing constructive and cooperative working relationships with others, and maintaining them over time.
Performing General Physical Activities — Performing physical activities that require considerable use of your arms and legs and moving your whole body, such as climbing, lifting, balancing, walking, stooping, and handling of materials.
Monitor Processes, Materials, or Surroundings — Monitoring and reviewing information from materials, events, or the environment, to detect or assess problems.
Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events — Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
Making Decisions and Solving Problems — Analyzing information and evaluating results to choose the best solution and solve problems.
Developing and Building Teams — Encouraging and building mutual trust, respect, and cooperation among team members.
Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material — Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
Evaluating Information to Determine Compliance with Standards — Using relevant information and individual judgment to determine whether events or processes comply with laws, regulations, or standards.
Coordinating the Work and Activities of Others — Getting members of a group to work together to accomplish tasks.
Resolving Conflicts and Negotiating with Others — Handling complaints, settling disputes, and resolving grievances and conflicts, or otherwise negotiating with others.
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge — Keeping up-to-date technically and applying new knowledge to your job.
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work — Developing specific goals and plans to prioritize, organize, and accomplish your work.
Processing Information — Compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data.
Training and Teaching Others — Identifying the educational needs of others, developing formal educational or training programs or classes, and teaching or instructing others.
Thinking Creatively — Developing, designing, or creating new applications, ideas, relationships, systems, or products, including artistic contributions.
Handling and Moving Objects — Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
Interpreting the Meaning of Information for Others — Translating or explaining what information means and how it can be used.
Judging the Qualities of Things, Services, or People — Assessing the value, importance, or quality of things or people.
Interacting With Computers — Using computers and computer systems (including hardware and software) to program, write software, set up functions, enter data, or process information.
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.
Administration and Management
Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
English Language
Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
Public Safety and Security
Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
Medicine and Dentistry
Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
Education and Training
Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
Therapy and Counseling
Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
Social Perceptiveness
Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
Monitoring
Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
Reading Comprehension
Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
Speaking
Talking to others to convey information effectively.
Critical Thinking
Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
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.
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.
Speech Recognition
The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Static Strength
The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
Deductive Reasoning
The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Written Expression
The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Information Ordering
The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Written Comprehension
The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Extent Flexibility
The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Trunk Strength
The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without 'giving out' or fatiguing.
Arm-Hand Steadiness
The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Category Flexibility
The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Inductive Reasoning
The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Speech Clarity
The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
