Job Summary:
Employee certified to care for physical and emotional needs of residents in an Americare skilled or assisted living facility. Employee provides residents with direct care to assure quality of life in a home like environment while offering additional support to family and visitors. Maintains professional behavior while functioning as an interdisciplinary team member meeting state and federal guidelines.
Supervision:
Under supervision of facility Administrator and / or Director of Nursing. Unless specifically noted does not supervise others.
Critical Functions:
Administers personal care to residents and maintains resident’s medical record. Employee responds to a variety of resident needs including answering call lights, bathing, dressing, personal hygiene, monitoring and recording vital signs, monitoring and recording food intake and output, transporting via wheel chair, assisting with ambulation in a safe manner. Included is general housekeeping such as changing linens and room organization. Position includes turning, repositioning and providing proper body alignment to prevent pressure sores and to aide in comfort of resident. Employee is to assist and support professional nurses as requested. Responsible to assist resident in obtaining quality of life in a safe living environment and be supportive to resident’s family members while projecting professional behavior.
Training and Experience:
Minimal 18 years of age, completion of certification course, ability to communicate effectively with residents, families, visitors and co-workers. Required to follow HIPAA guidelines and adhere to confidentiality of resident information. Position requires accuracy in observation, performance, reporting and documenting. Provide support to supervising licensed nurse and administrator or director of nursing.
Key Competencies:
- Ability to recognize, provide and record physical and emotional needs of resident.
- Possess ability to effectively communicate verbally and written regarding resident needs.
- Possess ability to effectively communicate with supervisor, peers, family members and visitors.
- Maintain resident confidentiality at all times and adhere to resident rights.
- Ability to recognize and follow resident care plan and maintain safe living environment by utilizing safety equipment and communicating with charge staff any concerns
- Demonstrate professional behavior and performance as an Americare employee.
Working Conditions:
Indoor with adequate lighting and ventilation, carpet, tile, concrete floors. May include outdoor or public activities or attending recreational events with residents.
Relationship to other jobs:
This position entails providing physical and emotional support to facility residents, working in harmony with peers and supervisors while demonstrating professionalism. The documentation and provisional care is part of an interdisciplinary team effort to meet state and federal requirements and provide a loving home environment for residents.
Physical Demands:
(In an 8 hour day: N=Never 0%, O= Occasional 1-33%, F=Frequent 34-66%, C=constant 67-100%)
Part time or full time or PRN. Shifts include day, evening and nights and weekends. Specific schedule needs must be discussed and noted at time of hire. Changes in schedule must be approved by director of nursing or administrator.
OSHA Exposure:
Category 1, possibility of exposure on daily basis. Required use of personal protective equipment
Safety Equipment:
Gait belt, lumbar support, two man lift policy, and use of mechanical lifts in noted facilities.
Essential Functions:
- Provide personal care to residents
- Ability to provide direct physical and emotional care to resident including, but not limited to, personal hygiene, transferring, lifting, maintain records, confidentiality and assistance with activities of daily living.
- Recognize and report in a timely manner any change in resident condition to charge staff.
- Support co-workers by providing assistance as needed or requested in resident care.
- Accurately observe record and report resident care, condition or needs as well as concerns.
- Report in timely manner any accidents or incidents involving residents, staff, visitors.
- Assist co-workers with admission or discharge of residents through documentation or tasks.
- Communicate through “report” to staff on preceding and oncoming shifts.Must be able to work independently or with peers to provide care of residents. Must be able to work eight (8) hour shift unless otherwise designated by supervisor. Must be able to provide first aid as needed. In assisted living facilities employee must be able to work independent of direct supervision.
- Provide housekeeping duties including cleaning of common areas and resident rooms.
- Answer phone, greet visitors and provide tour of facility when necessary.
- Demonstrate ability to apply restorative nursing/ therapy techniques to assist resident to their best health potential.
- If designated to transport residents to appointments or activities a valid driver’s license and ability to meet company requirements related to driving.
POSITION:
- Standing: Essential, frequently, indoor/outdoor surfaces, carpet, tile, concrete
- Walking: Essential, frequently, within facility, outdoor activities, public buildings assessments, while providing resident care.
- Sitting: Essential, frequently, phone, assessments, activities, transportation, documentation
- Change of position: Essential, frequently, sitting, standing, walking, assessments, providing care
TORSO and EXTREMITIES:
- Reaching, extend, hand, arms: Essential, frequently, documentation, transport, assist residents, providing care, transportation
- Reach across midline: Essential, frequent, documentation, transportation, assist residents
- Handling, hold, grasp, seize, and turn: Frequently, essential, documentation, activities, transportation, assist residents
- Fingering, pick up, pinch: Essential, frequently, documentation, activities, transportation, assist residents
- *Feeling, perceive, attributes of object: Essential, frequently, documentation, activities, transportation, assist resident
- Crouching, squatting, bend legs and spine: Essential, frequently, activities, transportation, assist residents.
- Crawling: only in emergency situations or emergency drills
- Balancing: Essential, frequently, documentation, activities, transportation, assist residents.
- Kneeling: Essential, occasionally, activities, transportation, assist residents.
- Stooping, bending: Essential, frequently, documentation, activities, transport, assist residents
- Jumping: Marginal, not normally required, may be in emergency
HEAD / NECK MOVEMENT:
- Static position: Essential, frequently, documentation, transport, assist residents, activities
- Left and right rotation: Essential, frequently, documentation, transport, assist residents, activities
- Forward and side: bending: Essential, frequently, documentation, transport, assist residents, activities
LIFT-CARRY-PUSH-PULL:
Lift / lowering:
- Essential, frequently, documentation, resident assist, transportation, 50 lb lift,
- Only assist residents to standing, or lower resident to floor 100 lb (push, pull, lower)
- Do not attempt to lift residents or support entire weight of resident
- Lower resident to floor in the event of fall. Utilize two man lift procedure
- Utilize required safety equipment
- Carrying: Essential, frequently, documentation, resident assist, transportation, activities
- Pushing-pulling: Frequently, essential, resident assist, wheel chair assist, activities, transportation Pushing weight of resident in wheelchair up to 350 lbs.
CLIMBING:
Stairs-ramp: Essential, occasionally, building access, assist residents, transportation
SENSORY:
- Auditory: Essential, resident request, breathing sounds, take and record vitals, assignments by staff.
- Visual: Essential, reading documents, read medication orders, administer medication noting correct resident, correct medication, correct time, correct dosage, correct route.
- Verbal: Essential, explain procedures, concerns or report to staff and residents and family members.
HAZARDS:
- Proximity of moving parts: Essential, occasional, activities, public events, transportation,
- Exposure to electrical energy: Essential, frequently, items which require electrical energy, such O2 tanks, lamps, television. Check equipment condition to prevent electrical shock.
- Exposure to toxic chemicals: Essential, frequent use of cleaning agents to clean and sanitize. Non exposure when using PPE as required.
- Blood borne pathogen exposure: Essential, frequently, assisting and caring for residents. Mandatoryuse of PPE per training eliminates exposure.
- Slippery, uneven surfaces: Occasionally, watch for wet floors when mopping has been done. Transportation during rain and or snow if employee assists with transportation.
SAFETY EQUIPMENT:
- It is mandatory to follow safety policies and procedures including use of safety equipment to protect residents and employees. Lumbar supports, gait belts, two man lift policy are mandatory in all facilities. Mechanical lifts are mandatory in skilled as directed by assessment and care plan.
- Mandatory reporting of all work related injuries within 24 hours to supervisor with participation in required documentation.
- Participation in our drug testing procedures is a mandatory part of employment with this facility.
