Job responsibilities vary based on where you work and live. CNAs often work in a wide variety of settings; nursing homes, hospitals, adult day care centers, personal homes and assisted living facilities all require nursing assistants to act as a helpful liaison between the RN or LPN and the patient. In many cases, CNAs serve as the RNs or LPNs eyes and ears, and relays information between many patients and nurses.
Nursing assistants fulfill basic quality-of-life needs for patients of any age in residential nursing care facilities. Since nursing assistants have daily contact with patients, they are gatherers of vital information about the patients conditions, which they must then transmit to their supervisors. A CNAs workload can become intense and fast-paced, but the human contact and ability to help those in medical need is a strong motivating factor. A desire to help people and compassion for patients can help a nurses assistant get through difficult days.