Nursing Assistant Certification

300 Hours/Instructor supported/Textbooks included

Overview

If you've ever thought about becoming a nursing assistant, this in-depth curriculum could help you learn important fundamental, practical skills involved in a career as a nursing assistant. Unlike other online nursing classes, our program lets you study at home at a time and place that is most comfortable to you.

Nursing assistants, also known as nurse’s aides, orderlies or patient care technicians work under the supervision of a nurse to provide assistance to patients with daily living tasks.

Working closely with patients, nursing assistants are responsible for basic care services such as bathing, grooming and feeding patients, assisting nurses with medical equipment, and checking patient vital signs. nursing assistants give patients important social and emotional support and also provide vital information on patient conditions to nurses.

Our nursing assistant course provides comprehensive career training in many key areas of nursing assistant duties, including:

Outline

Nursing Assistant Module 1

Introduction to Nursing Assisting & Scientific Principles

• Community Health Care
• Regulatory Agencies
• Role of the Nursing Assistant
• Patient Focused Care
• Lines of Authority
• Consumer Rights and Responsibilities
• Ethical and Legal Issues
• Medical Terminology
• Body Organization
• Classification of Disease
• Major Conditions and Diagnosis

Nursing Assistant Module 2

Basic Human Needs and Communication

• Communication in Health Care
• Guidelines for Communicating with Patients
• Communicating with Staff Members
• Observation, Reporting, and Documentation
• Meeting Basic Human Needs
• Dealing with Comfort and Pain
• The Need for Rest and Sleep
• Developing Cultural Sensitivity
• Race, Ethnicity and Culture

Nursing Assistant Module 3
Infection, Infection Control, Safety and Mobility

• The Chain of Infection
• Types of Infections
• Immunity and Immunizations
• Preventing Infections and Disease
• Maintaining Medical Asepsis
• Hand washing and Protecting Yourself
• Putting on a Gown and Gloves
• Dealing with Isolation Units
• Disinfection and Sterilization
• Environmental and Nursing Assistant Safety
• Violence in the Workplace
• Patient Safety
• Preventing Patient Falls
• Body Mechanics for the Patient
• Moving and Lifting Patients
• Guidelines for Safe Patient Transfers
• Ambulation and Assistive Devices
• Safe Use of Wheelchairs

Nursing Assistant Module 4
Measuring and Recording Vital Signs and Patient Care

• Body Temperature
• Pulse and Respiration
• Reading the Blood Pressure Gauge
• Measuring Height and Weight
• Admission Procedure
• Transferring the Patient
• Discharging a Patient
• Handling Linens and Making the Bed
• Making a Surgical Bed
• Patient Bathing
• Assisting with the Tub or Shower
• Hand and Fingernail Care
• Dressing and Undressing the Patient
• Assisting with Routine Oral Hygiene
• Daily Hair Care
• Assisting with a Bedpan and Bedside Commode

Nursing Assistant Module 5

Nutrition Balance and Special Care Procedures

• Normal Nutrition and Essential Nutrients
• Special Diets
• Dysphagia
• Fluid Balance
• Feeding Patients
• Therapy with Heat and Cold
• Hypothermia Blanket
• Assisting with the Physical Examination
• Dealing with the Surgical Patient
• Preoperative Care
• Postoperative Care
• Performing Postoperative Leg Exercises
• Applying Pneumatic Compression Hosiery
• Caring for the Emotionally Stressed Patient
• Professional Boundaries
• Dealing with Death and Dying
• Five Stages of Grief
• Hospice Care
• Postmortem Care

Nursing Assistant Module 6
Health Care Settings

• Care of the Elderly and Chronically Ill
• Types of Long Term Care Facilities
• Skilled Care Facilities
• Daily Living for Residents with Dementia
• Providers of Home Health Care
• The Home Health Care Team
• Characteristics of the Home Care Nursing Assistant
• Home Health Care Duties
• Safety in the Home
• Elder Abuse
• Description of Subacute Care
• Pain Management Procedures
• Patients with Respiratory Conditions
• Using a Pulse Oximeter
• Oncology Care and Treatment
• Wound Management
• Alternative and Complementary Care
• Integrative Health Care Practices
• Patient Spirituality

Nursing Assistant Module 7

Body Systems, Common disorders, and Related Care Procedure

• Integumentary System
• Respiratory System
• Circulatory (Cardiovascular) System
• Musculoskeletal System
• Endocrine System
• Nervous System
• Gastrointestinal System
• Urinary System
• Reproductive System
• Caring for the Patient with Cancer

Nursing Assistant Module 8

Expanded Role of the Nursing Assistant

• Rehabilitation and Restorative Services
• Obstetrical Patients and Neonates
• Pediatric Patients
• Special Advanced Procedures
• Response to Basic Emergencies
• Employment Opportunities and Career Growth
• Searching for a Job
• Assemble a Proper Resume’
• Keeping the Job
• Continue to Grow Throughout Your Career

Average Time of Completion: 4-6 months; Maximum Time to Completion: 1 Year

Instructor: Tricia Seymour, Ph.D.

She is a licensed professional counselor and counseling supervisor living in St. Petersburg, FL. She has received a Master degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and a Doctorate in Counseling Psychology.  She has worked with numerous universities and corporations creating online courses and training. She has created or assisted in creating hundreds of online courses.

Dr. Seymour has been in private practice since 1990 working with individuals, couples, and families. During her early years in private practice she assisted in the creation of an inpatient treatment program for Dissociative Identity Disorder(DID). She specialized in working with clients diagnosed with DID &/or Post Traumatic Stress Disorders (PTSD).

She is an adjunct faculty member at Park University teaching online in psychology, sociology and religion. She has been a training consultant to various agencies and organizations globally. She has created and presented corporate training in all 50 U.S. states and numerous foreign countries. She has taught "soft skills" topics such as Dealing with Stress, Interpersonal Skills, Dealing with Difficult People, Business Skills, Organizational Skills, and Other Personal Growth & Psychological Topics.

Instructor: Rusty Barrier Ph.D

Dr. Rusty Barrier holds a Ph.D. in counseling psychology, has been in private practice for 20 years, and is the co-author of Awaken to Oneness.

He has worked with thousands of people throughout the world,  in both private and psychiatric settings. His career began at Christi Center for Attitudinal Healing, in Corpus Christi, Texas where he served as the Executive Director. He was instrumental in founding the Corpus Christi Mayor's Commission on AIDS and The Passage AIDS hospice in Corpus Christi. He has presented lectures and workshops around the world on various healing techniques and spirituality. He currently resides in Saint Petersburg, Florida where he has his private practice.

Computer Requirements

Internet Access

·         Broadband or high-speed internet access is strongly recommended. Broadband includes DSL, cable, and wireless connections.

·         Dial-Up internet connections will result in a diminished online experience. Moodle pages may load slowly and viewing large audio and video files may not be possible.

Hardware

·         Virtually all Windows-Mac-Linux hardware configurations and processors are acceptable.

·         1 GB RAM recommended

Software

·         Operating Systems

§  Windows XP or Vista and Mac OS X 10 and higher, most Linux distributions

·         Web Browsers

§  Mozilla Firefox 2 and 3 (previous versions will work also)

§  Internet Explorer 6, 7 and 8

§  Safari is not currently recommended as it cannot display certain Moodle editing menus for both students and instructors

Media Plug-ins (These may be required depending on your course media-click on the links below to download the latest versions)

§  Adobe Flash Player

§  Adobe Acrobat Reader

§  Apple Quicktime

§  Windows Media Player

§  Real Player

§  PowerPoint Viewer (use this if you don’t have PowerPoint)