Introduction to CNA

As a professional member of the health care team, there are certain ethical and legal issues that must be upheld by the Certified Nurse Assistant.  Many of these ethical issues involve a little common sense on your part, but it is always good to know your limitations for your place of employment.

First of all, honesty is always the best policy.  You should be forthright with your patients and with other members of the health care staff.  If you make a mistake, you should own up to it.  After all, everyone makes a mistake now and then, and the best way to rectify the situation is to admit when you are wrong.  You should also avoid feeding into gossip or rumors that may cause conflict in your work place.

Avoid operating outside your scope of practice.  You should know your limitations and adhere to them.  You may even be asked to do something beyond your legal capabilities by a senior staff member or a supervisor.   If you are feeling pressured or if your rebuffs go unheeded, you should follow the chain of command and report it immediately.

You should report any and all abuse immediately.  This could involve verbal, emotional, physical or even sexual abuse of a patient by a staff member or it could involve the abuse of a staff member by another staff member.  In rare instances, a patient could assume the role of the abuser.  Be sure and document your findings, fill out an incident report and follow the chain of command to report any signs of abuse immediately.  There should be no reprimand for doing what is right.

A patient is entitled by law, the right to his/her privacy.  Avoid discussing a patient’s plan of care or condition with unauthorized personnel.  Avoid speaking to a patient’s family members about their personal issues unless the patient consents.  If you are unsure, have the family member ask the Doctor or Nurse in charge of them.  A patient’s condition is also not a proper discussion for other members of the healthcare staff unless they are directly involved in the care of that individual.  Also, it is unethical to discuss a patient’s affairs with your own friends or family members outside the healthcare facility.  This is extremely unprofessional and is a breach of patient trust.  It is also punishable by law.

Always document carefully.  Your documentation should be clear and concise and should accurately reflect the condition of the person whom you are caring for.  Avoid berating a belligerent patient in your documentation and leave your personal feelings out of notation.  A patient’s medical files are not about you; they are for that individual and should be kept professional.

There will be times in your medical career where you will bond with someone whom you are caring for.  It is natural to have feeling of compassion or even love for a patient who is under your care, especially if they require long term care.  Many patients feel gratitude and love toward their providers as well and some may want to repay you for your service to them.  It is unethical to accept gifts or money from a patient.  It is best to decline and say a kind word.

As a health care professional, it is easy to become attached to a patient or their family members, especially if they are under your care for an extended length of time.  Again, this is human nature.  However, it is highly unethical to become personally or sexually involved with a patient or one of their family members.  This is very unprofessional behavior and can ruin your reputation within the work place and can debase you in the eyes of the patient or their family.  Sexual relations with a patient or someone close to them may even result in your termination.  Keep all personal and sexual relations outside the work place.

A professional C.N.A. should know all legal and ethical boundaries and should follow them profusely.   If you are unsure, it is always a good idea to brush up on your reading skills and take the time to find out.  Following your code of ethics and working within the confines of the law will prove you to be trustworthy, reliable, and professional and will ensure your success as a professional member of the healthcare team.

Written by Stephanie Dubenezic RN, LPN

A CNA is an individual who has completed nursing assistant certification training and who has passed the exam for certification. On the other hand, HHA refers to home health aides. Home health aides are not always required to hold a certification though in most cases there are some licensing or certification requirements. There are some home health agencies that will hire an HHA. Other times an individual or their family hires an HHA directly for a loved one needing care in their home.

Certified nursing assistants will typically work in continuing care communities, rehabilitation centers and hospitals. A CNA will work with several different patients throughout the day. In a setting where new patients come and go often, a CNA will work with many different patients each year. A home health aide works with one client at a time. They work with patients in their own home providing a variety of home health services. A HHA might very well work with the same individual for several years. An HHA can also work with individuals of all different ages and from various walks of life.

Training for Certified Nursing Assistants

A certified nursing assistant requires more training than a HHA unless the HHA is also required to be a certified nursing assistant. Certified nursing assistants need to attend a state approved training class inorder to get certified. The training programs provide prospective nursing assistants with both classroom and clinical instruction. Training courses usually last for 3-6 weeks depending on the hours of instruction each week.

Certified nursing assistants receive some background instruction on medical and nursing related topics. They will usually need to complete some lab room instruction as well. Nursing assistant students then learn to work with patients directly. They learn how to safely and effectively carry out the most common tasks and duties that are assigned to certified nursing assistants.

When a CNA student completes a training course, they are required to sit for an exam. They must pass a written as well as hands on component to the exam. The exam provides students with an opportunity to demonstrate some of the nursing assistant skills that they learned during training.

Most certified nursing assistants are required to attend additional training each year. They will earn continuing education credits through some of the courses they must take and in-service meetings they must attend. A CNA is always learning something new in order to ensure that they can carry out their duties to the best of their ability.

Training for a Home Health Aide

An HHA often receives hands on training as opposed to attending a training course. There can still be requirements for the number of hours of training an individual must complete and any exams they must pass. They learn how to perform their duties while working directly with a client. Every person that requires a home health aide has their own individual needs. Their aides learn best by working with them directly.

A HHA can also be required to attend a course to become CPR certified. A Basic Life Skills course or other first aid courses can also be required. If a home health aid works for a nursing agency, they can be required to attend additional training courses periodically. They might even need to complete some continuing education credits each year.

Home health aides will generally receive their training under the direction of a Licensed Practical Nurse or a Registered Nurse. They might also spend a few days working under another HHA until they learn what duties they must perform for their assigned patient. It can take a few days for a home health aide to be ready to work with a patient completely on his or her own.

A nursing supervisor will evaluate most home health aides at times. If the HHA needs improvement in any areas, this is the time for their supervisor to point out those areas. The supervisor can then help the aide to improve his or her skills.

A CNA and an HHA often carry out similar duties. They assist patients and clients with activities of daily living. Nursing assistants and home health aides work with individuals who need a little help on a day-to-day basis. The patients and clients are often older individuals, individuals with chronic illnesses or individuals who were recently ill or injured.

There are many characteristics of a successful CNA.  A CNA will excel in their career and provide the best possible care for their patients if they have some great attributes.  Let us look at 5 characteristics of a successful.  Of course, these are just a few of the characteristics of a good CNA.  CNAs will need to have various personality traits in order to do well in their career.

There are many characteristics of a successful Certified Nursing Assistant. Today we will cover 5 of the most important ones that you should have to provide the patients with the best possible care.

Compassionate: A CNA should always be a compassionate individual.  They will often be working with individuals who are ill or injured.  They will also be interacting with family members who are concerned about an ill loved one.  CNAs should understand the fears and frustrations of patients and their families.  They should be compassionate even when a family member or patient is being difficult.  A good CNA will always act with compassion under all circumstances.

Kind: Successful CNAs should be kind individuals.  They should be able to make a patient feel more at ease even when they are not feeling well or are simply nervous about an appointment or test.  A patient likes to see a friendly face when they are interacting with their CNA.  They do not want someone who is unkind or who is not at all friendly to them.  CNAs should also be friendly when interacting with family members.

Hard-Working: A CNA should always be a hard-working individual.  CNAs have a lot of responsibilities and duties throughout the day.  They often work long hours and see many different patients.  A CNA should be very ambitious.  If a CNA does not want to work hard, they are not likely to stay employed for very long as a CNA.  They will need to be motivated and be a self-starter in order to be able to handle the workload of a CNA.

Patient: CNAs should be patient individuals.  They will often be over-worked and frazzled.  They cannot let this fact show through to patients, co-workers or family members.  A CNA must be patient even when a patient is being difficult.  They need to remain calm if a family member is complaining about something beyond their control.  Patience goes a long way in the field of nursing.

Responsible: A CNA must be a highly responsible individual.  They will be caring for patients with various levels of illness or injury.  You have to make sure all the paper work of that patient is in order and not miss out on any of the daily duties that you have to perform.

These are a few of the traits that a CNA should have.  You can consider whether or not you have these traits if you are giving some thought to starting out a career as a CNA.