Patient Care Assistant

Covenant Health•Knoxville, TN

2d•Onsite

About The Position

The Patient Care Assistant is a direct patient caregiver who performs hands-on care, assists with activities of daily living, and completes specified technical tasks for a group of patients under the supervision of the Team Leader. The assistant may also serve as a sitter for patients who need full-time supervision in the hospital. The role is in the Float Pool and is listed as PRN/OCC, with variable hours per pay period and a night shift at Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center.

Requirements

No specific minimum education is required. Applicants 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 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 may be preferred.

Responsibilities

Measure and record patients’ temperature, pulse, respiration, blood pressure, weight, height, and intake and output.
Encourage patients to turn, cough, breathe deeply, and use incentive spirometry as specified by the plan of care.
Ambulate patients and assist them with transfers into or out of bed and wheelchairs, and with transport as needed.
Attend to nutritional needs, including distributing meal trays, feeding patients, and filling and distributing water pitchers.
Provide morning or evening care, including bathing, oral hygiene, hair care, 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 by reporting faulty equipment and appropriately handling linen and storing supplies.
Provide general care, including positioning, lifting, and turning patients; assisting 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 according to the plan 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 RN.
Help maintain a clean and orderly patient and work environment.
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 oxygen setup equipment; check oxygen connections and placement; check bedside equipment for proper function; and ambulate patients receiving oxygen.
Set up suction equipment and check that it functions properly.
Demonstrate knowledge and competency in meeting age-specific needs of the population served and perform skills on the Nursing Assistant checklist.
Follow policies, procedures, and safety standards; complete annual education assignments; work toward goals and objectives; and participate in quality-improvement initiatives as requested.
Train and be willing to serve as a sitter for patients requiring full-time hospital supervision.
Perform other duties as assigned.