As a nursing assistant, you must act and function in a professional manner. Professionalism involves following laws, being ethical, having good work ethics, and having the skills to do your work. Laws and ethics are discussed in Chapter 4. Laws are rules of conduct made by government bodies. Ethics deals with right and wrong conduct. It involves choices and judgments about what to do or what not to do. An ethical person does the right thing. In the workplace, certain behaviors (conduct), choices, and judgments are expected. Work ethics deals with behavior in the workplace. Your conduct reflects your choices and judgments. Work ethics involves:

• How you look

• What you say

• How you behave

• How you treat others

• How you work with others

To get and keep a job, you must conduct yourself in the right way.

Health, hygiene, and appearance

Residents, families, and visitors expect the health team to look and act healthy. For example, a person is told to stop smoking, yet he or she sees health team members smoking. If you are not clean, people wonder if you give good care. You are part of the health team. Your health, appearance, and hygiene need careful attention.

Your health

You must give safe and effective care. To do so, you must be physically and mentally healthy. Otherwise you cannot function at your best.

• Diet. You need a balanced diet (Chapter 24). Start your day with a good breakfast. To maintain your weight, balance the calories you take in with your energy needs. To lose weight, take in fewer calories than your energy needs. Avoid foods high in fat, oil, and sugar. Also avoid salty foods and crash diets.

• Sleep and rest. Sleep and rest are needed for health and to do your job well. Most adults need about 7 hours of sleep daily. Fatigue, lack of energy, and irritability mean you need more rest and sleep.

• Body mechanics. You will bend, carry heavy objects, and handle, move, and turn persons. These tasks place stress and strain on your body. You need to use your muscles correctly (Chapter 16).

• Exercise. Exercise is needed for muscle tone, circulation, and weight loss. Walking, running, swimming, and biking are good forms of exercise. Regular exercise helps you feel better physically and mentally. Consult your doctor before starting a vigorous exercise program.

• Your eyes. You will read instructions and take measurements. Wrong readings can cause the person harm. Have your eyes checked. Wear needed eyeglasses or contact lenses. Provide enough light for reading and fine work.

• Smoking. Smoking causes lung, heart, and circulatory disorders. Smoke odors stay on your breath, hands, clothing, and hair. Hand washing and good personal hygiene are needed.

• Drugs. Some drugs affect thinking, feeling, behavior, and function. Working under the influence of drugs affects the person’s safety. Only take drugs ordered by a doctor. Take them in the prescribed way.

• Alcohol. Alcohol is a drug that depresses the brain. It affects thinking, balance, coordination, and mental alertness. Never report to work under the influence of alcohol. Do not drink alcohol while working. Like other drugs, alcohol affects the person’s safety.

Your hygiene

Personal hygiene needs careful attention. Bathe daily. Use a deodorant or antiperspirant to prevent body odors. Brush your teeth often—upon awakening, before and after meals, and at bedtime. Use a mouthwash to prevent breath odors. Shampoo often. Style hair in a simple, attractive way. Keep fingernails clean, short, and neatly shaped.

Menstrual hygiene is important. Change tampons or sanitary pads often, especially if flow is heavy. Wash your genital area with soap and water at least twice a day. Also practice good hand washing.

Foot care prevents odors and infection. Wash your feet daily. Dry thoroughly between the toes. Cut toenails straight across after bathing or soaking them.

Your appearance

Good health and hygiene practices help you look and feel well. Follow the practices in Box 5-1, p. 46. They help you look clean, neat, and professional (Fig. 5-1, p. 46).

Box 5-1

Practices for a Professional Appearance

• Practice good hygiene.

• Wear uniforms that fit well. They are modest in length and style. Follow the center’s dress code.

• Keep uniforms clean, pressed, and mended. Sew on buttons. Repair zippers, tears, and hems.

• Wear a clean uniform daily.

• Wear your name badge or photo ID at all times when on duty. Make sure it can be seen. Wear it according to center policy.

• Wear undergarments that are clean and fit properly. Change them daily.

• Wear undergarments in the correct color for your skin tone. Do not wear colored (red, pink, blue, and so on) ones. They can be seen through white and light-colored uniforms.

• Cover tattoos (body art). They may offend others.

• Follow the center’s dress code for jewelry. Wedding and engagement rings may be allowed. Rings and bracelets can scratch a person. Confused or combative persons can easily pull on jewelry (necklaces, dangling earrings). So can young children.

• Do not wear jewelry in pierced eyebrows, nose, lips, or tongue while on duty.

• Follow the center’s dress code for earrings. Usually small, simple earrings are allowed. For multiple ear piercings, usually only one set of earrings is allowed.

• Wear a wristwatch with a second (sweep) hand.

• Wear clean stockings and socks that fit well. Change them daily.

• Wear shoes that fit properly, are comfortable, give needed support, and have non-skid soles. Do not wear sandals or open-toed shoes.

• Clean and polish shoes often. Wash and replace laces as needed.

• Keep fingernails clean, short, and neatly shaped. Long nails can scratch a person. Nails must be natural.

• Do not wear nail polish. Chipped nail polish may provide a place for microbes to grow.

• Have a simple, attractive hairstyle. Hair is off your collar and away from your face. Use simple pins, combs, barrettes, and bands to keep long hair up and in place.

• Keep beards and mustaches clean and trimmed.

• Use makeup that is modest in amount and moderate in color. Avoid a painted and severe look.

• Do not wear perfume, cologne, or after-shave lotion. The scents may offend, nauseate, or cause breathing problems in residents.

Getting a job

There are easy ways to find out about jobs and places to work:

• Newspaper ads

• Local state employment services

• Centers you would like to work at

• Phone book yellow pages

• People you know—your instructor, family, and friends

• The Internet

• Your school’s or college’s job placement counselors

• Your clinical experience site

Your clinical experience site is an important source. The staff always looks at students as future employees. They look for good work ethics. They watch how students treat residents and co-workers. They look for the qualities and traits described in Box 5-2. If that center is not hiring, the staff may suggest other places to apply.

Box 5-2

Qualities and Traits for Good Work Ethics

• Caring. Have concern for the person. Help make the person’s life happier, easier, or less painful.

• Dependable. Report to work on time and when scheduled. Perform delegated tasks. Keep obligations and promises.

• Considerate. Respect the person’s physical and emotional feelings. Be gentle and kind toward residents, families, and co-workers.

• Cheerful. Greet and talk to people in a pleasant manner. Do not be moody, bad-tempered, or unhappy while at work.

• Empathetic. Empathy is seeing things from the person’s point of view—putting yourself in the person’s place. How would you feel if you had the person’s problems?

• Trustworthy. Residents and staff have confidence in you. They believe you will keep information confidential. They trust you not to gossip about residents or the health team.

• Respectful. Residents have rights, values, beliefs, and feelings. They may differ from yours. Do not judge or condemn the person. Treat the person with respect and dignity at all times. Also show respect for the health team.

• Courteous. Be polite and courteous to residents, families, visitors, and co-workers. See p. 54 for common courtesies in the workplace.

• Conscientious. Be careful, alert, and exact in following instructions. Give thorough care. Do not lose or damage the person’s property.

• Honest. Accurately report the care given, your observations, and any errors.

• Cooperative. Willingly help and work with others. Also take that “extra step” during busy and stressful times.

• Enthusiastic. Be eager, interested, and excited about your work. Your work is important.

• Self-aware. Know your feelings, strengths, and weaknesses. You need to understand yourself before you can understand the residents.

What employers look for

If you owned a business, who would you want to hire? Your answer helps you better understand the employer’s point of view. Employers want people who:

• Are dependable

• Are well-groomed

• Have needed job skills and training

• Have values and attitudes that fit with the center

Good work ethics involves the qualities and traits described in Box 5-2. They are necessary for you to function well (Fig. 5-2).

Fig. 5-2 Good work ethics involves these qualities and traits.

Applicants who look good communicate many things to the employer. You have one chance to make a good first impression. A well-groomed person will likely get the job. A sloppy person with wrinkled or dirty clothes may not get the job, nor will someone with body or breath odors. See p. 48 for how to dress for an interview.

Being dependable is important. You must be at work on time and when scheduled. Undependable people cause everyone problems. Other staff take on extra work. Fewer people give care. Quality of care suffers. You want co-workers to work when scheduled. Otherwise, you have extra work. You have less time to spend with residents. Likewise, co-workers also expect you to work when scheduled.

Job skills and training

Employers need to know that you have the required job skills. To work in long-term care, you must complete a state-approved nursing assistant training and competency evaluation program (NATCEP). This is a requirement of the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987 (OBRA). The employer checks the nursing assistant registry and requests proof of training:

• A certificate of course completion

• A high school, college, or technical school transcript

• An official grade report (report card)

Give the employer only a copy of your certificate, transcript, or grade report. Never give the original to the employer. Keep it for future use. The employer may want a transcript sent directly from the school or college.

Job applications

You get a job application from the personnel office or human resources office (Fig. 5-3, pp. 48-49). You can complete the application there. Or you can take it home and return it by mail or in person. You must be well-groomed and behave pleasantly when seeking or returning a job application. It may be your first chance to make a good impression.

Fig. 5-3 A sample job application. (Courtesy ADP Screening and Selection Services, Ft. Collins, Colorado.)

To complete a job application, follow the guidelines in Box 5-3, p. 50. How you fill out the application may mean getting or not getting the job. Often the application is your first chance to impress the employer. A neat, readable, and complete application gives a good image. A sloppy or incomplete one does not.

Box 5-3

Guidelines for Completing a Job Application

• Read and follow the directions. They may ask you to print using black ink. You need to follow directions on the job. Employers look at job applications to see if you can follow directions.

• Write neatly. Your writing must be readable. A messy application gives a bad image. Readable writing gives the correct information. The center cannot contact you if unable to read your phone number. You may miss getting the job.

• Complete the entire form. Something may not apply to you. If so, write “non-applicable” or “N/A” for non-applicable. Or draw a line through the space. This tells the employer that you read the section. It also shows that you did not skip the item on purpose.

• Report any felony arrests or convictions as directed. Write “no” or “none” as appropriate. Criminal background and fingerprint checks are common requirements.

• Give information about employment gaps. If you did not work for a time, the employer wonders why. Provide this information to give a good impression about your honesty. Some reasons are an illness, going to school, raising your children, or caring for an ill or older family member.

• Tell why you left a job, if asked. Be brief, but honest. People leave jobs for one that pays better. Some leave for career advancement. Other reasons include those given for employment gaps. If you were fired from a job, give an honest but positive response. Do not talk badly about a former employer.

• Provide references. Be prepared to give names, titles, addresses, and phone numbers of at least four references who are not relatives. You should have this information written down before completing an application. (Always ask references if an employer can contact them.) You may get the job faster or over another applicant if the employer can quickly check references. If they are missing or not complete, the employer waits for all of the information. This wastes your time and the employer’s time. Also, the employer wonders if you are hiding something with incomplete reference information.

• Be prepared to provide the following:

• Social Security number

• Proof of citizenship or legal residency

• Proof of required training and competency evaluation

• Identification—driver’s license or government-issued ID card

• Give honest responses. Lying on an application is fraud. It is grounds for being fired.

• Keep a file of your education and work history.

Some centers provide job applications on-line. Follow the center’s instructions for completing and sending an on-line application.

The job interview

A job interview is the employer’s chance to get to know and evaluate you. You also find out more about the center.

The interview may be when you complete the job application. Some centers schedule interviews after reviewing applications. Write down the interviewer’s name and the interview date and time. If you need directions to the center, ask for them at this time.

Box 5-4, p. 50 lists common interview questions. Prepare your answers before the interview. Also prepare a list of your skills. Give the list to the interviewer.