by Jeanine Gilbert

Created on: April 28, 2009

One of the hardest jobs in Nursing is being a Nurse's Aide. Multitasking is a needed talent to get through a normal day. Depending on the shift you work getting residents up in the morning or lay them down for the night, is not an easy job.

Just think of getting one resident up in the morning. You get to work between six thirty or seven, go into their room, get them into the bathroom with a stand pivot transfer with the Wheelchair, and sit them on the commode. With a washcloth, a pan of nice hot water, and soap, you wash their face, back, and front then dry them. Now put lotion and deodorant on. Clothes are now ready to put on the top half.

Now you are ready for the bottom half. You place a brief on them, and long pants, then socks and shoes, when the resident is finished, stand them up to wash the bottom half and then dry. Pull up the bottom clothing, and place Resident into the wheelchair.

Now they need their dentures, hearing aids, glasses, Kleenex, sweater because they will feel cold. Styling their hair, spraying perfume, and putting the clip alarm if they need it. If it is a man you are with, he will be shaved, and have cologne put on.

Now it is time for breakfast, and you must feed, about three residents. The head nurse just tells you that Vitals must be done by 10am, and you have to get ten of them. The hairdresser tells you, they need one of your residents by 9:30am, for a hair appointment.

Now you got your Breakfast finished and recorded what your group ate, and drank. In addition, you have your first resident up, now you need to get nine more up. Two are Hoyer lifts, so you will need a sling, and a mechanical lift, with another aide to help with the transfer.

Amber was nice and help with two of your residents to get up, but you have seven more to do, and you are behind, usually most of the residents are up now, except a few.

You have wanders who will try to escape and some who will try to fight you. You must stay cool and calm, and take care of one resident at a time. Oh, Yes! You still have two showers left. You last resident was just a general wash when it is not their shower or bath day.

Other aides need your help, but you have more resident to get, and time is running out, it will be Lunch soon!

One of your residents just fell, now the nurse wants her vitals taken, and she needs to see if she has any open wounds or bruises from the fall. You need to help the Nurse. It is great she had her clip alarm on when she fell, or you would have, been written up.

A co-worker just told you, your resident needs to be changed, he has diarrhea from the flu he still has. Now the lunch carts have arrived.

We must all pass out the trays and help feed. The woman that fell, the Ambulance is on their way to pick her up; she broke her leg in the fall.

After you pick up trays and record for lunch, your charts need to be finished, and residents need to be changed and checked. Now to lay them down, for an afternoon nap.

Once residents are done, and charting completed. A brake would be nice, but now we have to answer call lights, five are on, and if they are not answered in a timely fashion, we can be written up.

Life as a Nurse's Aide is not easy; it would be nice to be thanked for a great job! By Resident's, Families of resident's, and co-workers, and Head Nurses. We may be a dime a dozen, like some Nurse's feel, but were good at what we do! We are very important to the Nurses. We are their eyes, ears, nose, and hands, making their job so much easier.

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