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Certified nursing attendant skills for your resume and career

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted experts

Marina Orobinskaia,

Marina Orobinskaia

Below we've compiled a list of the most critical certified nursing attendant skills. We ranked the top skills for certified nursing attendants based on the percentage of resumes they appeared on. For example, 73.6% of certified nursing attendant resumes contained patients as a skill. Continue reading to find out what skills a certified nursing attendant needs to be successful in the workplace.

15 certified nursing attendant skills for your resume and career

1. Patients

Here's how certified nursing attendants use patients:

Practiced infection control techniques and universal precautions while assisting patients with hygiene.
Labored in the Telemetry Unit and also in the Labor and Delivery Unit* Assist patients recovering from recent surgery.

2. Vital Signs

Vital signs are a set of values indicating different body systems' performance. They are measurements of the body's most basic functions. The four major vital signs used in medicine to assess a patient are body temperature, pulse rate, respiration rate, and blood pressure.

Here's how certified nursing attendants use vital signs:

Observe behavior and take vital signs including blood pressure, temperature, heart rate and breaths.
Complete and total nursing care obtaining and recording vital signs intake, output.

3. CPR

Cardiopulmonary resuscitation or CPR is a medical procedure that involves chest compression to help a patient breathe. This artificial ventilation helps in keeping the brain function in place and regulates blood throughout the body. CPR is a lifesaving procedure that is used in emergencies.

Here's how certified nursing attendants use cpr:

Skilled in activities of daily living, behavioral management, crisis prevention/intervention and CPR certified.
Maintained current CPR certification, able to utilize and obtain appropriate emergency equipment.

4. Patient Care

Patient care entails the diagnosis, recovery, and control of sickness as well as the maintenance of physical and emotional well-being through the use of healthcare providers' services. Patient care is described as services provided to patients by health practitioners or non-professionals under guidance.

Here's how certified nursing attendants use patient care:

Demonstrate what it means to be part of a team and raise the bar for patient care.
Provided assistance to nurses or physicians in the operation of medical equipment or provision of patient care.

5. Emotional Support

At its core, emotional support involves providing support, reassurance, acceptance, love, and encouragement. It is especially important in a time of stress/sadness as it stabilizes an individual and provides a positive foundation for trust. Honing this skill is important for individuals who want to pursue the career of caregivers and emotional support nurses. Their job includes monitoring mental health and helping patients to handle any mental challenge.

Here's how certified nursing attendants use emotional support:

Provided psychological and emotional support during frequent emotional outbursts of crying, fear of abandonment, confusion, hallucinations and delusions.
Provided patients and families with emotional support*Dementia care*Exhibited compassionate care and communication with regard to issues of death and dying.

6. Home Health

Here's how certified nursing attendants use home health:

Provided in-home health care and management of daily living skills and patient activities; documented and interpreted confidential records and patient information
Experienced medical receptionist with customer service experience in working within home health settings.

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7. Direct Patient Care

Here's how certified nursing attendants use direct patient care:

Administered direct patient care of geriatric population in the skilled and assisted living environment.
Provided direct patient care, assistance/supervision during activities daily living such as eating, bathing and ambulating.

8. ADL

ADL is a clinical shorthand for "activities of daily living." It includes tasks such as feeding, dressing, bathing, and caring for one's self and personal hygiene.

Here's how certified nursing attendants use adl:

Do ADL sheets and assist RN's and LPN's when needed.
Provided designated care for residents including distribution of medication, personal hygiene assistance and ADL care

9. Catheter

Here's how certified nursing attendants use catheter:

Recorded medical information which included vital signs, specimens and catheter.
Collect laboratory specimens and also provide catheter care.

10. Bedpans

Here's how certified nursing attendants use bedpans:

Administered treatments using medical equipment including bladder scanners, intermittent pneumatic compression devices, anti-embolism stockings and bedpans.
Recorded and reported vitals along with dispensing/retrieving bedpans.

11. Surgery

Here's how certified nursing attendants use surgery:

Assisted PT/OT to provide therapy and cue's on how to ambulate during and after surgery.
Informed doctors and anesthesiologists of any pertinent information pertaining to patient and surgery to be performed.

12. Fresh Water

Fresh Water refers to an area of water not in the ocean. Depending on context, fresh water may be used to describe an aquatic environment, such as freshwater fish, or to define water that is acceptable to drink. This water typically contains very low levels of salt and can be found in rivers, lakes, or ponds.

Here's how certified nursing attendants use fresh water:

Provided fresh water/nourishment between meals.
Initiate physical activities; prep and serve meals, feed patients as necessary, providing fresh water and nourishment between meals.

13. Colostomy

Here's how certified nursing attendants use colostomy:

Experienced with Colostomy care and bed bound residents.
Provide escort to residents to various appointments.provide colostomy and folly care.

14. Gait Belts

Here's how certified nursing attendants use gait belts:

Accomplished at transferring non-ambulatory residents to and from beds to wheelchairs using Gait Belts and special lift techniques.
Transport residents using wheelchairs, gait belts, lifts, in order to ambulate them.

15. Urinals

Here's how certified nursing attendants use urinals:

Provided personal hygienic assistance to patients by assisting with bedpans and urinals, bathing and generalized body cleansing procedures.
Keep linen and patient's room clean and in order as well as empty and clean urinals and bed pans.

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What skills help Certified Nursing Attendants find jobs?

Tell us what job you are looking for, we’ll show you what skills employers want.

What skills stand out on certified nursing attendant resumes?

Marina Orobinskaia

Program Coordinator, Bellevue College

Experience, good program attended.

What soft skills should all certified nursing attendants possess?

Marina Orobinskaia

Program Coordinator, Bellevue College

Friendliness, positive energy, leadership.

What hard/technical skills are most important for certified nursing attendants?

Marina Orobinskaia

Program Coordinator, Bellevue College

There are no more or less important skills. You need to learn all of them to excellence and what is most important - use your critical thinking when you do them.

What certified nursing attendant skills would you recommend for someone trying to advance their career?

Jeanne Martin PhD, MSN, RN, CNE

Clinical Associate Professor

As the nursing shortage intensifies, health care facilities are increasing their hourly wages and the supplemental wages of working off-shifts or weekends. They are enticing new graduates with sign-on bonuses that they receive in portions over a specified period of time (like 1-2 years). Many facilities are also offering tuition reimbursements so new graduates can pay off their student loans. I am sure there are other measures but these are the ones I hear most about from our graduates.

Do you want to know more?

List of certified nursing attendant skills to add to your resume

The most important skills for a certified nursing attendant resume and required skills for a certified nursing attendant to have include:

Patients
Vital Signs
CPR
Patient Care
Emotional Support
Home Health
Direct Patient Care
ADL

Catheter
Bedpans
Surgery
Fresh Water
Colostomy
Gait Belts
Urinals
Wheel Chair

Medical Equipment
Patient Rooms
Allergies
Patient Behavior
Bed Baths
EKG
ICU

Updated January 8, 2025

Zippia Team

Editorial Staff

The Zippia Research Team has spent countless hours reviewing resumes, job postings, and government data to determine what goes into getting a job in each phase of life. Professional writers and data scientists comprise the Zippia Research Team.

Updated January 8, 2025

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