Top skills for Certified Nursing Assistants

• Compassion: If you have a compassionate heart that beats for the well being of your patients then you will survive even in the toughest situations. A genuine empathy towards patients, good rapport with them and the visitors is must.
• Patience: In this profession you will meet patients from different walks of life. You have to deal with the frustration, anger, despair and silence of your patients. And all this asks for lots of patience.
• Will power: Most of the time you have to assist the Head Nursing staff in varied shifts. To not lose calm and cope up with emergencies and situations like pandemic ask for strong will power.
• Confidence: If you yourself will remain dull or clumsy while performing duties, how would the patients recover. Hence a lively, active and confident persona is a must. Your every action should speak about your dedication towards your duties.
• Interactive: This profession is more about emotional bond. Imagine a patient suffering from internal or external pain gets greeted with a just stern hello! Sounds pathetic, isn't? Therefore a few kind pleasantries exchanged with patients or the visitors add on a lot of positivity into the whole environment. A good dose of positive conversation works like therapy with comatosed or paralyzed patients.
• Physically strong: Shifting and moving patients require lots of strength. You should possess a strong personality to perform such tasks. You can't fill others from empty cups, hence make sure to keep yourself physically fit and active.

Certified Nursing Assistants education and certifications

• Education

  Requirements for becoming a CNA may vary for every State. registerednursing.org briefs following information about certifications and education required for becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant.
  
  
  • Unlike other professions you don't require a degree to become a Certified Nursing Assistant. You have to go through the training to get a certificate or diploma. Therefore aspiring candidates have to enroll themselves for specific training programmes.
  • Initially candidates should make sure that the programme for which they are enrolling themselves is sanctioned by the States Nursing Board and by the Nursing Accredited Commission.
  • To become a Nursing Assistant students should have a high school diploma and nursing assistant training. Community colleges, schools and healthcare centres offer such training programmes.
  • After the training is completed, trainees are required to clear a certification exam. Examination is held in two parts.
    
    

    • First one contains a written examination. 90 minutes are alloted to candidates for attempting Multiple Choice Questions.
    • Second one emphasis on the practical part of training. In this part competency skills and practical knowledge of candidates is checked by a single observer/supervisor.

    
    Aspirants have to perform four random skills to show how well they have understood their tasks.

• Certifications

  Nursing education training programmes are evaluated and monitored by the Commission Collegiate Nursing Education. U.S Department of Education is assigned to maintain a database of schools that run such training camps.
  
  Nurse Journal quotes that coursework of becoming CNA involves care taking of patients, operating various medical equipment, knowledge of nutrition, details about body mechanics etc. The course extends for a minimum of 200 hours.

• Licensure

  Norms related to issue of license vary as per policies of different States. Usually aspirants have to gain 75 hours of classroom training and practical experience. After completion of training, a candidate's name gets listed in the States Registers of CNA.

Certified Nursing Assistant resume-writing tips

• Power of objective statement: It may sound obvious and general to spare three to four lines in objective statement. But in this profession a good objective statement is a great kick start to the resume and to your career.
  
  
  • Fresher: Clearly mention how passionate you are about this career. Write in brief how well you have understood your duties during training. State few qualities that may help you to become a dedicated and responsible Certified Nursing Assistant.
  • Experienced: If you have already landed your services as CNA then it's a great opportunity for you. You should flaunt your on the job training experience in the objective statement.
• Skills always matter: If you are a part of any fitness club or treat yoga, workout or gymming as priority then don't hesitate to write about it. This career asks for a combination of stable please and fit personality. Hence detailing about your dedication for your own self is an advantage.
  
  
  • Hard skills: Hard skills means practical knowledge and experience you gained while getting trained. Training here means both be it attending Certification programs or while gaining some previous on the job training. Enlist all the qualities you nurtured while care taking of patients. If you have worked in some rehabilitation centres, healthcare wards etc, briefly write two three lines about it. Statung how it helps you to shape up for this career.
  • Soft Skills: This profession is more about your individual capabilities. How well you can handle emergency situations, your communication skills, time management qualities etc every single detail about you matters.
• Profession oriented: While writing about your training phase, experience or even little things apt for technical terms used in the healthcare sector. Mention how well you get along with equipment used to perform the role of the CNA. A good vocab not only makes you sound professional but also shows how well versed and well trained you are.
• Achievements and Certifications: Bring all your practical training on the floor. Dedicate a separate section for the Certifications. Below that respective certification, write how that training period helped you to move inch forward into this career.

Looking for Cover Letter ideas? See our sample for Certified Nursing Assistant cover letter.