Earning a Certified Nursing Assistant degree will prepare one for a career working under the tutelage of a fully qualified nurse. Sometimes referred to as the nurses right arm, nurse’s aide, patient care technicians, orderlies or home health aides deal directly with patients by tending to their needs and overseeing their overall well being. This may include tasks such as:
- Feeding patients
- Ensuring the patient maintains good personal hygiene, such as bathing and grooming
- Checking vital signs
- Maintaining patient records and medical equipment.
Becoming a certified nursing assistant is a great way to gain a foot into the medical profession, with a sizeable percentage of certified nursing assistants eventually making the moved up to become registered nurses (RN).
Unlike most facets of the medical profession, becoming a certified nursing assistance does not require years of study and can be achieved by completing a CAN certificate program.