Role of a CNA

long-term care (LTC): care given in long-term care facilities for people who need 24-hour, skilled care.

skilled care: medically necessary care given by a skilled nurse or therapist.

terminal illness: a disease or condition that will eventually cause death.

chronic: long-term or long-lasting.

diagnoses: physicians’ determinations of an illness.

activities of daily living (ADLs): daily personal care tasks such as bathing; caring for skin, nails, hair, and teeth; dressing; toileting; eating and drinking; walking; and transferring.

charting: documenting important information and observations about residents.

chain of command: the line of authority within a facility.

scope of practice: defines the tasks that healthcare providers are legally allowed to do and how to do them correctly.

care plan: a plan developed for each resident to achieve certain goals; it outlines the steps and tasks that the care team must perform.

verbal communication: communication involving the use of spoken or written words or sounds.

nonverbal communication: communicating without using words.

objective information: information based on what a person sees, hears, touches, or smells; also called signs.

subjective information: information that a person cannot or did not observe, but is based on something reported to the person that may or may not be true; also called symptoms.

vital signs: measurements—temperature, pulse, respirations, blood pressure, pain level— that monitor the functioning of the vital organs of the body.

radial pulse: the pulse located on the inside of the wrist, where the radial artery runs just beneath the skin.

brachial pulse: the pulse located inside the elbow, about one to one-and-a-half inches above the elbow.

respiration: the process of breathing air into the lungs and exhaling air out of the lungs.

inspiration: breathing in.

expiration: exhaling air out of the lungs.

systolic: first measurement of blood pressure; phase when the heart is at work, contracting and pushing the blood from the left ventricle of the heart.

diastolic: second measurement of blood pressure; phase when the heart relaxes or rests.

occupied bed: a bed made while a person is in the bed.

unoccupied bed: a bed made while no person is in the bed.

closed bed: a bed completely made with the bedspread and blankets in place.

open bed: a bed made with linen folded down to the foot of the bed.

Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA): provides or assists with personal care.

Registered Nurse (RN): coordinates, manages, & provides Skilled care; a licensed professional who has graduated from a 2-4 year program & passed a national licensure exam.

Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN): gives medication & treatment. Licensed professional who has completed 1-2 years of education & passed a national licensure exam

Medical Doctor (MD): Diagnoses disease or disability & prescribes treatment.