Nursing Assistant

Esther Caldwell, MA, PhD, is a Consultant in Vocational Education. Barbara Acello is an independent nurse consultant and educator in Denton, Texas. She is an active, contributing member of the Texas Nurses Association and the American College of Healthcare Administrators, where she was honored with the national Educator of the Year Award in 2007, the Journalism Award in 2009 and the Chair's Award -- the organization's highest honor -- in 2016 for her years of extraordinary service. Stretching across four decades, her nursing career includes work in hospitals, long-term care facilities and home health, with geriatrics as her preferred area of clinical practice. Presently, she is involved with freelance consulting, lecturing and writing. She has written and contributed to many textbooks, journal articles, instructor guides, computerized test banks, quick reference guides, nursing and managerial reference books, online inservices and supplemental instructional materials for health care personnel. Believing that the nursing assistant is the most important caregiver in the health care facility, Acello is committed to improving working conditions, education and professionalism for these vital professionals. She may be contacted at bacello@aol.com. Barbara Hegner, MS, RN, Former Professor Emeritus Nursing and Life Science at Long Beach City College in California.

Brief Table of Contents
SECTION 1 INTRODUCTION TO NURSING ASSISTING
Unit 1 Community Health Care
Unit 2 Role of the Nursing Assistant
Unit 3 Consumer Rights and Responsibilities in Health Care
Unit 4 Ethical and Legal Issues Affecting the Nursing Assistant
SECTION 2 SCIENTIFIC PRINCIPLES
Unit 5 Medical Terminology and Body Organization
Unit 6 Classification of Disease
SECTION 3 BASIC HUMAN NEEDS AND COMMUNICATION
Unit 7 Communication Skills
Unit 8 Observation, Reporting, and Documentation
Unit 9 Meeting Basic Human Needs
Unit 10 Comfort, Pain, Rest, and Sleep
Unit 11 Developing Cultural Sensitivity
SECTION 4 INFECTION AND INFECTION CONTROL
Unit 12 Infection
Unit 13 Infection Control
SECTION 5 SAFETY AND MOBILITY
Unit 14 Environmental and Nursing Assistant Safety
Unit 15 Patient Safety and Positioning
Unit 16 The Patients Mobility: Transfer Skills
Unit 17 The Patients Mobility: Ambulation
SECTION 6 MEASURING AND RECORDING VITAL SIGNS, HEIGHT, AND WEIGHT
Unit 18 Body Temperature
Unit 19 Pulse and Respiration
Unit 20 Blood Pressure
Unit 21 Measuring Height and Weight
SECTION 7 PATIENT CARE AND COMFORT MEASURES
Unit 22 Admission, Transfer, and Discharge
Unit 23 Bedmaking
Unit 24 Patient Bathing
Unit 25 General Comfort Measures
SECTION 8 PRINCIPLES OF NUTRITION AND FLUID BALANCE
Unit 26 Nutritional Needs and Diet Modifications
SECTION 9 SPECIAL CARE PROCEDURES
Unit 27 Warm and Cold Applications
Unit 28 Assisting with the Physical Examination
Unit 29 The Surgical Patient
Unit 30 Caring for the Emotionally Stressed Patient
Unit 31 Caring for the Bariatric Patient
Unit 32 Death and Dying
SECTION 10 OTHER HEALTH CARE SETTINGS
Unit 33 Care of the Elderly and Chronically Ill
Unit 34 The Organization of Home Care: Trends in Health Care
Unit 35 The Nursing Assistant in Home Care
Unit 36 Subacute Care
Unit 37 Alternative, Complementary, and Integrative Approaches to Patient Care
SECTION 11 BODY SYSTEMS, COMMON DISORDERS, AND RELATED CARE PROCEDURES
Unit 38 Integumentary System
Unit 39 Respiratory System
Unit 40 Circulatory (Cardiovascular) System
Unit 41 Musculoskeletal System
Unit 42 Endocrine System
Unit 43 Nervous System
Unit 44 Gastrointestinal System
Unit 45 Urinary System
Unit 46 Reproductive System
Unit 47 Care of the Patient with Cancer
SECTION 12 EXPANDED ROLE OF THE NURSING ASSISTANT
Unit 48 Rehabilitation and Restorative Services
Unit 49 Obstetrical Patient and Neonate
Unit 50 Pediatric Patient
Unit 51 Special Advanced Procedures
SECTION 13 RESPONSE TO BASIC EMERGENCIES
Unit 52 Response to Basic Emergencies
SECTION 14 MOVING FORWARD
Unit 53 Employment Opportunities and Career Growth