What do Nurses Aides do?

Nurses aides turn and re-position bedridden patients, alone or with assistance, to prevent bedsores. Answer patients’ call signals. Feed patients who are unable to feed themselves. Observe patients’ conditions, measuring and recording food and liquid intake and output and vital signs, and report changes to professional staff. Provide patient care by supplying and emptying bed pans, applying dressings and supervising exercise routines.

Provide patients with help walking, exercising, and moving in and out of bed. Bathe, groom, shave, dress, and/or drape patients to prepare them for surgery, treatment, or examination. Collect specimens such as urine, feces, or sputum. Prepare, serve, and collect food trays. Clean rooms and change linens. Transport patients to treatment units, using a wheelchair or stretcher.

Deliver messages, documents and specimens. Answer phones and direct visitors. Administer medications and treatments, such as catheterizations, suppositories, irrigations, enemas, massages, and douches, as directed by a physician or nurse. Restrain patients if necessary. Maintain inventory by storing, preparing, sterilizing, and issuing supplies such as dressing packs and treatment trays. Explain medical instructions to patients and family members.

Perform clerical duties such as processing documents and scheduling appointments. Work as part of a medical team that examines and treats clinic outpatients. Set up equipment such as oxygen tents, portable x-ray machines, and overhead irrigation bottles.

Nursing Aides’ Salary

To get a certified nurses aide job, there is training involved that can last 12 weeks depending on the curriculum. Top nursing aides can expect to receive 35,000 a year in salary.