Home Health Aide (CNA)

Description

GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF POSITION

This position provides companionship/personal care to the client and keeps records on personal health care activities as defined within the respective regulatory environment (State Home Health Regulations). C.N.A./HHA will comply with dress code and the Agency and present a neat and clean professional fashion as well as project a positive demeanor.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

1. The performance of all personal care activities contained in a written assignment by a licensed health professional employee or contractor of the home health agency and which include assisting the patient or client with personal hygiene, ambulation, eating, dressing, shaving, physical transfer, and other duties as assigned.

2. Maintenance of a clean, safe and healthy environment, which may include light cleaning and straightening of the bathroom, straightening the sleeping and living areas, washing the patient's or client's dishes or laundry, and such tasks to maintain cleanliness and safety for the patient or client.

3. Other activities as taught by a licensed health professional employee or contractor of the home health agency for a specific patient and are restricted to the following: A) Assisting with the change of a colostomy bag. B) Assisting with the use of devices for aid to daily living, such as a wheelchair or walker. C) Assisting with prescribed range of motion exercises. D) Assisting with prescribed ice cap or collar. E) Doing simple urine tests for sugar, acetone or albumin. F) Measuring and preparing special diets. G) Measuring intake and output of fluids, and H) Measuring temperature, pulse, respiration or blood pressure.

4. Keeping records of personal health care activities.

5. Observing appearance and gross behavioral changes in the patient or client and reporting to the registered nurse, and.

6. Supervision of self-administered medication in the home is limited to the following: A) Obtaining the medication container from the storage area for the patient. B) Ensuring that the medication is prescribed for the patient. C) Reminding the patient that it is time to take the medication as prescribed. D) Observing the patient self-administering the medication.

7. Personal care activities may include: A) Personal Hygiene/Grooming - Helping the client with shaving, oral care, care of hair and nail care. B) Ambulation - Provide physical support to enable the client to move about within or outside of their home or facility. Physical Support includes supporting or holding the client's hand, elbow, arm; holding on to a support belt worn by the client to assist in providing stability or direction while the client ambulates; or pushing the client's wheelchair. C) Eating/Meal Preparation - Helping with cutting food, pouring beverages, and feeding clients who are unable to feed themselves. D) Dressing - Helping the client to choose and to put on and remove clothing. E) Toileting - Assisting the client to the bathroom, helping to undress, positioning on the commode, and helping with related personal hygiene, including assistance with changing an adult brief. Assistance with toileting includes assistance with the routine emptying of a catheter or colostomy bag. F) Bathing - Assembling towels, soaps, and other necessary supplies. Helping the client in/out of the shower, turning the water on/off, adjusting the water temperature, washing and drying portions of the body which are difficult for the client to reach, or being available while the client is bathing. G) Transfer - Provide verbal and physical cueing or physical assistance or both while the client moves between bed and a standing or between bed and a chair or wheelchair.

8. Perform any other related duties as required or assigned.

Qualifications

QUALIFICATIONS

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential duty mentioned satisfactorily. The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

High school or GED, plus specialized schooling and/or on the job education in a specific skill area; e.g. data processing, clerical/administrative, equipment operation, etc, plus 12 to 18 months related experience and/or training, or equivalent combination of education and experience.

COMMUNICATION SKILLS

Ability to read and understand documents such as policy manuals, safety rules, operating and maintenance instructions, and procedure manuals; Ability to write routine reports and correspondence.

MATHEMATICAL SKILLS

Ability to add, subtract, multiply and divide numbers. Ability to perform these mathematical skills using money and other forms of measurement.

CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS

Ability to use common sense understanding in order to carry out detailed written or oral instructions. Ability to deal with problems involving a few known variables in situations of a routine nature.

REQUIRED CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

C.N.A.'s must receive a passing score on the Home Health Aide Competency test as administered per Agency guidelines. Current FL CPR certification and valid FL driver's license/car insurance.

PREFERRED CERTIFICATES, LICENSES, REGISTRATIONS

Not indicated.

SOFTWARE SKILLS REQUIRED

Not indicated.

INITIATIVE AND INGENUITY

SUPERVISION RECEIVED

Under general supervision where standard practice enables the employee to proceed alone on routine work, referring all questionable cases to supervisor.

PLANNING

Considerable responsibility with regard to general assignments in planning time, method, manner, and/or sequence of performance of own work; may also occasionally assist in the planning of work assignments performed by others within a limited area of operation.

DECISION MAKING

Performs work operations which permit frequent opportunity for decision-making of minor importance and also frequent opportunity for decision-making of major importance; the latter of which would affect the work operations of other employees and/or clientele to a moderate degree.

MENTAL DEMAND

Close mental demand. Operations requiring close and continuous attention for control of operations. Operations requiring intermittent direct thinking to determine or select the most applicable way of handling situations regarding the organization's administration and operations; also to determine or select material and equipment where highly variable sequences are involved.

ANALYTICAL ABILITY / PROBLEM SOLVING

Moderately structured. Fairly broad activities using moderately structured procedures with only generally guided supervision. Interpolation of learned things in somewhat varied situations.

RESPONSIBILITY FOR WORK OF OTHERS

Responsibility for work of others: Not indicated.

RESPONSIBILITY FOR FUNDS, PROPERTY and EQUIPMENT

Regularly responsible for property where carelessness or error would result in only minor damage or minor monetary loss. Almost continuous care and attention is required when handling this property in order to prevent loss.

ACCURACY

Probable errors would not likely be detected until they reached another department, office or patron, and would then require considerable time and effort to correct the situation. Frequently, possibility of error that would affect the organization's prestige and relationship with the public to a limited extent, but where succeeding operations or supervision would normally preclude the possibility of a serious situation arising as a result of the error or decision.

ACCOUNTABILITY

FREEDOM TO ACT

Directed. Freedom to complete duties as defined by wide-ranging policies and precedents with mid to upper-level managerial oversight.

ANNUAL MONETARY IMPACT

The amount of annual dollars generated based on the job's essential duties / responsibilities. Examples would include direct dollar generation, departmental budget, proper handling of organization funds, expense control, savings from new techniques or reduction in manpower.

None. Job does not create any dollar monetary impact for the organization.

IMPACT ON END RESULTS

Modest impact. Job has some impact on the organizations end results, but still from an indirect level. Provides assistance and support services that facilitates decision making by others.

PUBLIC CONTACT

Frequent contacts with general public, patrons, or other outside representatives, wherein the manner of handling these contacts has a bearing on the organization's position and operation.

EMPLOYEE CONTACT

Contacts of considerable importance within the department or office, such as those required in coordination of effort, or frequent contacts with other departments or offices, generally in normal course of performing duties. Requires tact in discussing problems and presenting data and making recommendations, but responsibility for action and decision reverts to others.

USE OF MACHINES, EQUIPMENT AND/OR COMPUTERS

Regular use of complex machines and equipment (desktop/laptop computer and software, road and production machines and equipment, driver's license/cdl, etc.)

WORKING CONDITIONS

Somewhat disagreeable working conditions. Continuously exposed to one or two elements such as noise, intermittent standing, walking; and pushing, carrying, or lifting. May involve some travel and/or work is at times, in the evening or during the night hours.

ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS

The following work environment characteristics described here are representative of those an employee encounters while performing essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

PHYSICAL ACTIVITIES

The following physical activities described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions and expectations.

Moderate diversity, moderately physical. Work activities which allow for a moderate amount of diversity in the performance of tasks which requires somewhat diversified physical demands of the employee.

While performing the functions of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear; and frequently required to stand, walk, sit, use hands to finger, handle, or feel; occasionally required to reach with hands and arms, climb or balance, stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl, taste or smell. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 50 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision; distance vision; and color vision.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Physical Demands: Visual/hearing acuity sufficient to understand written/oral communication and to observe the client's condition. While performing this job, good body mechanics are involved, may be required to lift, transport/transfer clients. Bending, squatting, standing and walking as required. Must be able to push approx. 250 pounds in a wheelchair. Must be able to lift between approximately 50-100 pounds.

Mental Demands: Must be able to work under stress and cope with sometimes difficult, confused, disoriented and physical disabled clients. Equipment: Operations of washer/dryer, vacuum cleaner, cooking equipment and other household appliances.

Safety: Responsible for client safety. Must use care in performing job duties to prevent accident and injury to self & others. Must be familiar with and use proper lifting techniques. Maintain compliance with the Agency safety program. If issued, safety equipment must be used.

Working Conditions: Good working conditions in the home. Occasionally may be exposed to unpleasant odors, soiled clothing and linens. May be subject to verbal abuse or non-cooperative clients.

Travel: May be required to take a client to physician's appointment, shopping or errands. If transportation is involved, must have current driver's license, required auto inspection and carry adequate auto insurance.

Work/Others: Follows the direction of the nursing care plan under the guidance of the Director of Home Health/Designee. Accepts responsibility for completing assignment(s) once it has been accepted.