Nov 19, 2014

Job Description for Home Health Aide and Certified Nursing Assistant

By Lanee’ Blunt


Once a nursing assistant becomes certified there is some flexibility in the job and how you can use your certificate. You will provide care for people in nursing homes, patients in hospitals and clients at home. The nursing staff delegate’s duties to them and they provide basic nursing care for patients. A nursing aide and home health aide must be certified to work in a long term care facility and a home health care agency.

Home Health Aide

Job responsibilities of a Home Health Aide

Their duties are helping clients meet their daily needs so that they can stay in their homes without this service many people would have to be institutionalized. They provide daily living skills activities and assist their patients with personal hygiene, bathing, hair care, grooming and dressing. They help clients to and from the bathroom, assists with bedpans, and bladder and bowel requirements. A home health aide performs light housekeeping services and may perform some heavy housekeeping duties as well. Their patients can’t get out of the house so they must grocery shop, prepare shopping list and prepare meals. They must drive and escort individuals to medical, doctor’s visits, and church, recreational, vocational and run errands. They perform medical procedures such as, taking blood pressure, temperature, give whirlpools, and collect specimen’s they must keep accurate details and document all the services that they have provided for the client that is under their care. They help patients with prescribed exercises, and giving medications. Occasionally, they help with artificial limbs and braces.

HHA Work Place

A home health aide often works for a certified home health or hospice agency. These agencies receive government funding and they must comply with strict regulations. You will be working with a medical staff and under supervision of registered nurses and must report any changes or concerns to them.

Job Requirements

If you want to apply for a position there are certain criteria’s that you must meet before you can be considered. You must have a valid driver’s license and a good driving record. You will need to prove that you have automobile insurance. You must have your CNA certificate.



Certified nursing assistant

Job responsibilities of a Certified Nursing Assistant

The job duties consist of patient treatment and daily living care and attention.  CNA's assist patients in and out of wheelchairs and transfer them in and out of bed.  They bathe residents, dress them, and brush their hair. These individuals are the principle care givers in nursing homes. They have a lot of contact with the patients and often develop close caring relationships with the patients.

Aiding Nurses

The job additionally requires assisting nurses by measuring patient's vital signs, blood pressure and temperature. They will serve meals, set up their food tray and assist patients by feeding the ones that can't feed themselves. They aid patients in walking, and transferring them between beds and wheelchairs. Then they observe the health of patients and make records of the changes and report changes to a supervising nurse.

CNA’s Work Place

They work in nursing home, long-term care facilities, and mental health facilities. A great deal work in hospitals, and hospices.

Training required becoming a CNA


You can complete the nursing assistant training in a relatively short period of time some programs are 6 to 12 weeks. The Red Cross’s program is 171 hours and teaches you how to provide quality care to residents in nursing homes. Community colleges also offer CNA certificate programs. The training that you will receive will include counting and recording a patient’s pulse, taking and recording the patient’s blood pressure and temperature, assisting with the activities of bathing, using the toilet, and hygiene; correct techniques to use to move and position, and the recording of information on charts and forms.