Be In the Know!

Twenty years ago, when I worked at Duke University Medical Center, I remember clearly how some of my co-workers viewed their colleagues in home care.  I was precepting a newly hired nurse to our oncology unit.  A number of the “old timers” on the unit whispered to me, “Good luck training her!  She doesn’t have any skills…she’s been working as a home health nurse!” The general consensus seemed to be that home care was the “red-headed stepchild” of the health care industry.

Things have definitely changed!  Home care has now taken the lead as the fastest growing sector of the health care industry.  Here are some statistics to prove it:

• According to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), the number of patients needing home care after hospitalization is up by a whopping 70 percent!

• The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 22 percent employment growth through 2018 for health care in general, but home health jobs are expected to increase by more than 46 percent.

Many of those job openings will be for home health aides.  As home care agencies struggle to fill positions, it will be more challenging than ever to develop and maintain a team of top-notch HHAs.  That’s where In the Know can help.  With more than 140 topics, we’ve got an inservice that addresses nearly any issue that might arise for your home health aides.  If you would like assistance in putting together either an orientation program for newly hired aides or a continuing education program, please give us a call.

Oh…and my colleagues at Duke were wrong.  That former home health nurse did just fine on the unit!  And, a couple of years later, I moved on from the hospital to work in home care myself.

Congratulations to home health for finally being recognized in the media as such an important part of our health care system.  And, a big thank you to all you home health nurses and aides out there for the vital work you do!

Last week, the results of a Penn State study on occupational injuries were revealed.  It should come as no surprise that nursing assistants and home health aides were high on the “injured list”.  However, the researchers found that on-the-job injuries caused a lot more than just a few aches and pains.  They also led to increased CNA turnover and, potentially, a bad reputation in the community!  Here’s what Deirdre McCaughey, assistant professor of health policy and administration had to say:

“In our research, we saw a cascading effect.  Employees who had no training or did not believe their training prepared them well had more injuries.  Those employees were also much less likely than non-injured employees to recommend their organization as a place at which to work or seek services.”

Here are some other findings of the study:

• Employees who felt ill-prepared were three times more likely to be injured than employees who were well-trained.
• Employees who felt poorly supervised were also more likely to be injured–not just once, but multiple times.
• Cutting back on training to shave the budget increased employees’ injury risk and turnover rates.  In the long run, this boosted costs rather than saving money!

You’ve probably experienced it firsthand.  When money gets tight, education is one of the first things to go…especially at the nursing assistant level.  But are you really saving money?  What are the injury and turnover rates at your workplace?  If asked, do you think your CNAs would consider themselves both well-trained and well-supervised? Would they recommend your organization as a place to work or as a place to receive care?

At In the Know, we strive to provide quality CNA continuing education to meet every budget.  If you’d like to discuss how you can maintain a top-notch team of (healthy) nursing assistants please give us a call at 877-809-5515.  With more than 130 inservice topics, including modules on safe transfers, back care, the CNA/Nurse relationship and personal wellness, we can meet your CNAs’ learning needs.

Happy Teaching!

Linda

Your CNAs make observations about their clients all day long.  Therefore, it’s incredibly important that each of your CNAs know what, when and how to report what they see.  Not only should your nurse aides know the procedure for reporting and documenting client care, they should also be aware of what observations are considered abnormal.  After completing our new inservice topic, “Recognizing and Reporting Abnormal Observations”, your nurse aides will be able to:

• Distinguish between normal and abnormal observations in their clients.
• Identify the specific course of action to take with each abnormal observation they may encounter.
• List at least three abnormal observations they might make in regards to:  vital signs, mental status, nutrition and pain.
• Distinguish between objective and subjective observations.
• Demonstrate the ability to recognize and properly report abnormal observations in their daily work.

Would you like to see a sample page from the inservice? Click here to view the PDF file.

Interested in ordering this topic? Click here to visit our website.  If you would prefer to order over the phone, call us toll-free at 877.809.5515 and one of our helpful associates will be happy to assist you!

It’s CNA Week and that’s a great time to think about how you can help your nursing assistants continue to learn on the job.  Here at In the Know, we’re all about lifelong learning.  And we know that the best learning experiences are often a bit “outside the box”.  So, here are some tips that might spur both critical thinking and learning among your direct care staff:

• Institute a “Learning Award” and present it to the nursing assistant who completes the most hours of continuing education in a specific time period (calendar quarter or year) or on a specific subject pertinent to your workplace (patient rights or workplace safety).

• Encourage and support skills that go beyond client care, such as money management, parenting, career planning, resume writing, etc.

• Have a different nursing assistant lead each inservice meeting with you.

• Consider developing a tuition reimbursement plan and/or a college scholarship program for the nursing assistants at your workplace.

• Ask a CNA or two to join you when a medical equipment representative comes in to demonstrate or promote a new product.  The CNAs may know best if the equipment in question will work at your facility.

• Encourage your nursing assistants to volunteer for committees at work–ethics, quality improvement, safety, etc.  Then, give them the time and support to attend the meetings.

• At home health or hospice client care meetings, ask your aides to present each of their clients.  Don’t let them sit there quietly when they probably have such valuable input to share.

• On your CNAs’ yearly performance evaluations, make sure that at least one of their goals has to do with learning.

• Build a library of books at your workplace on a variety of subjects:  health care, motivation, parenting, physical fitness, healthy eating, etc.  Allow your CNAs to “check out” the books.

• Encourage your CNAs to become computer literate (if they aren’t already).\

• Start each inservice or staff meeting by asking your CNAs to share one thing they have learned since the last meeting.

• Assess the learning needs of your nursing assistants quarterly…or at least annually.

• Teach your CNAs to speak up if they are assigned to a client with an unfamiliar diagnosis.

• Have your nursing assistants lead a book club for the residents in your facility or teach the residents one of their favorite hobbies.

Whew…as you can see, the possibilities are endless!  But the bottom line remains the same:  give your nursing assistants the opportunity to learn and grow and they will be happier, more productive employees.  And, you’ll have a team of top-notch CNAs!

Nurses and nursing assistants are all part of the same team and have the same goal: provide quality care to clients in need. So why is it that nurses and CNAs don’t always see eye to eye? Here’s what a few CNAs across the U.S. had to say recently:

Valnecia said: “I respect nurses for their education but they should realize that CNAs are their eyes and ears with the patients.  I feel the nurses at my job do not take me seriously—as if I don’t know what I am talking about.  We need to learn to work together as a team and not against each other.”

Guadalupe said: “Nurses and CNAs should have respect for one another; this would not only help the patients but create a better work environment.”

Heather said:  “I know we don’t have as much schooling as nurses but we’re not dumb and that’s how I feel that we’re treated sometimes.  And, some of my fellow CNAs are terrible, too.  They throw child-like tantrums when you ask them for some help.   I just wish everyone would work together as a team.“

Lori said:  “I love my job and will stick it out but when I’m doing a good job and don’t get any good feedback-just constant criticism instead-that is when the going gets tough. Just a little praise goes a long way.”

Do any of the above statements sound familiar? If so, here are some tips you can share that may help promote respect between the nurses and CNAs at your workplace:

Be kind to everyone on the nursing team. Remember that working with sick and/or aging people can be emotionally exhausting.  It can be very frustrating to work hard every day and see no improvement in your clients—or even see them getting worse.   Support your coworkers…and let them support you!

Put yourself in your co-workers’ shoes. Think about what it must be like to be them—what they may be going through and why they behave as they do.  When you try to understand other people, it’s easier to empathize with them.

Pull your own weight by fulfilling your assigned duties. But, remain flexible, too!  Your assignment may change from week to week, from day to day or even from hour to hour.  And, when someone asks you to help with a task that’s not one of your regular duties, try to avoid saying, “That’s not my job.”

Be passionate about your work. By showing others that you love your work, you become a shining example for others to follow.

Do the right thing. If you approach your work with honesty and integrity—and do your best at all times—you will respect yourself for a job well done.  And self-respect is so important!  Remember the old Spanish proverb, “If you want to be respected, you must first respect yourself.”

Keep on learning. Take every opportunity to learn new things.  Complete extra inservices and then apply what you learn during your daily work with clients.  The more you know, the more valuable you become to yourself, your co-workers and to your workplace.

For more about teamwork between nurses and CNAs, consider our inservice modules: The CNA/Nurse Relationship and Working with a Team.

Until next time!

Linda

Linda Leekley BS, RN

The internet offers some terrific options for nursing paraprofessionals who are looking to learn new things. However, it’s easy to get “lost” in cyberspace when searching for relevant information. Here are just a few sites that we feel have a lot to offer CNAs—and anyone who works in health care. You may want to pass them on to your nursing assistants and/or home health aides.

Nursing Assistant Resources on the Web
For ten years, three nursing assistants named Patti, Kim and Heather have worked diligently to create a central location for CNAs to access information on the web. They believe that “the more informed CNAs are, the better quality work they will produce.”

On this site, you’ll find a blog filled with important information for CNAs and anyone who is part of the healthcare system. I regularly read their blog postings! The blog is interactive which means readers can post their comments (the same as here on the In the Know blog).

Nursing Assistant On-line Video Lessons
Your CNAs are bound to find the Nursing Assistant On-line Video Lessons interesting. This site was created by Fox Valley Technical College and Northeast Wisconsin Technical College as a resource for nursing assistant students.

While the videos are copyrighted, you are welcome to watch them online for free. There are 80 different videos to help CNA students reinforce their classroom learning and to give working CNAs a refresher on a variety of topics. The videos alone cannot count as inservices, but they still provide a great learning experience.

Nursing Assistant Central
This is another great site that has great information for both students and working CNAs. This website offers information about becoming a CNA and tips for succeeding as a CNA.

There is also a very active message board which provides an excellent place to ask questions, learn and socialize with others in the field. All are welcome to participate, whether you’re a past, present or prospective CNA.

We recommend taking a long look around Nursing Assistant Central. You’re bound to learn a thing or two. We did!

National Network of Career Nursing Assistants
Have your heard of the National Network of Career Nursing Assistants? It is a non-profit educational organization that promotes recognition, education, research, advocacy and peer support development for nursing assistants in nursing homes and other long term care settings. Genevieve Gipson NA RN MEd RNC is the director. She advocates tirelessly for direct-care workers across the United States.

One of our favorite spots on this site is a page of Frequently Asked Questions. These questions (and answers) relate to transferring CNA certification from one state to another, finding a local CNA training program, and much much more!

Last but not least, you may want your nurse aides to check out our Just for CNAs blog. On it, we strive to provide them with information that will help them in both their careers and their personal lives.

Till next time,
Linda

Linda Leekley BS, RN

Welcome to our blog, brought to you by In the Know. You may know us as publishers of continuing education for nursing assistants…and indeed we are. But, at our core, we believe that lifelong learning is essential for both personal and professional growth.

It’s simple: the more all of us know, the more we can achieve. In this blog, you’ll find thoughts, ideas and tips for how to encourage lifelong learning at your workplace. We welcome your comments and feedback, so that we can benefit from your knowledge and experience, too!

Thanks for joining us. We look forward to hearing from you!

Linda

Linda Leekley BS, RN
President, In the Know, Inc.