PATIENT CARE ASSISTANT

Covenant Health•Knoxville, TN

7d•Onsite

About The Position

The Patient Care Assistant works in the Cardiology Unit as a direct patient caregiver, performing tasks to assist registered nurses. Under the supervision of the Team Leader, the role provides hands-on care, assistance with activities of daily living, and specified technical tasks for a group of patients. The assistant may also serve as a sitter for patients who need full-time supervision in the hospital. This position is listed as PRN/OCC with variable hours and shifts.

Requirements

No minimum education is specified. Candidates must have a combination of formal education and/or prior work experience sufficient to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed for the job, typically equivalent to a high school diploma or GED.
CPR certification is required.
Must be trained and willing to function as a sitter for patients who need full-time supervision in the hospital.

Nice To Haves

A high school diploma or GED is preferred.

Responsibilities

Measure and record patients’ temperature, pulse, respiration rates, blood pressure, weight, height, and intake and output.
Encourage patients to turn, cough, breathe deeply, and use incentive spirometry as specified in the plan of care.
Ambulate patients and assist them in and out of bed, into wheelchairs, and during transport as needed.
Address patients’ nutritional needs, including distributing meal trays, feeding patients, and filling and distributing water pitchers.
Provide morning or evening care, including bathing, oral hygiene, grooming, back care, dressing, linen changes, and tidying the patient’s room and bedside area.
Empty drains, canisters, urine bags, bedpans, and emesis basins, and record intake and output.
Help maintain a safe environment, including reporting malfunctioning equipment and properly handling linen and storing supplies.
Provide general care, including positioning, lifting, and turning patients; helping with bedpans, urinals, or commodes; preoperative supportive care; and applying or removing abdominal binders, anti-embolism stockings, and sequential compression devices.
Empty and clean ostomy bags according to procedure.
Collect urine, stool, and sputum specimens as ordered.
Perform range-of-motion tasks and assist with ambulatory devices as specified in patients’ plans of care.
Perform phlebotomy after additional training, including correctly labeling samples with two patient identifiers and maintaining, rotating, and restocking lab-draw supplies.
Perform EKGs after special training.
Promptly answer patient call lights and respond to patient requests.
Report significant changes in patients’ conditions to the registered nurse.
Help maintain clean and orderly patient and work environments.
Follow infection-control policies, including standard and transmission-based precautions, OSHA standards, safety measures, and proper body mechanics.
Document and maintain patient records as appropriate.
Gather equipment for oxygen setup and check oxygen connections and placement.
Check that equipment at the patient bedside is functioning properly.
Ambulate patients who are using oxygen.
Set up suction equipment and check that it functions properly.
Demonstrate knowledge and competency in meeting the age-specific needs of the population served.
Demonstrate the skills listed on the Nursing Assistant checklist.
Follow policies, procedures, and safety standards; complete annual required education; work toward goals and objectives; and participate in quality-improvement initiatives as requested.
Train and be willing to serve as a sitter for patients who need full-time hospital supervision.
Perform other duties as assigned.