A registered nursing assistant or nursing aid works under the supervision of a licensed nurse. Their primary role is to provide basic care to patients, which can include bathing, feeding, changing, and moving. They also take patients' vital signs and, depending on their level of training, may administer medication or therapy to patients.
Other specific duties of a registered nursing assistant include initiating life-saving measures, training CNAs, reporting concerns to LPNs or RNs, providing assistance to case managers, and preparing the ICU for incoming patients.
To become a registered nursing assistant, you would first need to complete an associate's degree in nursing, which usually takes six to twelve weeks to complete. After completing the program, you would have to pass a state exam before you can practice as a registered nursing assistant.
In terms of pay, the salary range for this role is between $35,000 to $102,000 a year. Some registered nursing assistants continue their studies to become registered nurses, which often provides higher pay.
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a Registered Nursing Assistant. For example, did you know that they make an average of $23.29 an hour? That's $48,434 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 9% and produce 137,800 job opportunities across the U.S.
There are certain skills that many Registered Nursing Assistants have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed Communication skills, Compassion and Patience.
If you're interested in becoming a Registered Nursing Assistant, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 35.0% of Registered Nursing Assistants have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 5.4% of Registered Nursing Assistants have master's degrees. Even though some Registered Nursing Assistants have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become a Registered Nursing Assistant. When we researched the most common majors for a Registered Nursing Assistant, we found that they most commonly earn Associate Degree degrees or Bachelor's Degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on Registered Nursing Assistant resumes include High School Diploma degrees or Diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become a Registered Nursing Assistant. In fact, many Registered Nursing Assistant jobs require experience in a role such as Registered Nurse. Meanwhile, many Registered Nursing Assistants also have previous career experience in roles such as Staff Nurse or Certified Nursing Assistant.