Nursing Assistant Skills For A Resume (With Examples)

Updated 15 August 2023

Nursing assistants are medical professionals hired by hospitals to provide healthcare and support to patients alongside nurses and doctors. Though they help patients with basic tasks such as eating, bathing, nursing, dressing wounds and moving around, they have an important role in patient recovery. If you are interested in becoming a nursing assistant, understanding the skills required in this profession can help you develop them and succeed in the role. In this article, we discuss nursing skills for a resume, explore a list of skills required by nursing assistants and understand the steps to develop these skills for your job.

What Are Nursing Assistant Skills For A Resume?

Nursing assistant skills for a resume are a combination of technical and interpersonal skills that recruiters look for in prospective nursing assistant candidates. These skills help nursing assistants communicate easily with different patients and provide the required medical care. As nursing assistants may work with patients of different age groups and different illnesses, these skills are extremely important. Mentioning these skills on a resume can tell the recruiter about your suitability and proficiency to handle the challenges a nursing assistant's job may present.

Examples Of Nursing Assistant Skills For A Resume

Here are some skills that you can mention in your resume while applying for a nursing assistant job:

Verbal and written communication

Communication is one of the most important skills that a nursing assistant requires as they communicate with doctors, nurses and patients. They communicate important details with doctors and nurses about their patients, including administering medicine and reporting about patients' vitals. They may also be required to take notes while doctors convey important patient information. Excellent communication skills ensure nursing assistants can communicate easily with patients and understand their condition. This skill then helps them provide doctors with a summary of the patients' health.

You can mention this skill in the strengths or skills section of your resume and highlight any courses that you may have taken to validate your proficiency in communication.

Attention to detail

Nursing assistants help nurses and doctors monitor the health of patients. They are often required to create detailed reports and record patient details such as pulse rate, blood pressure and oxygen levels. This requires them to have attention to detail so that they can record accurate information. Mentioning this skill in your resume tells the recruiter that you are aware of the job responsibilities of the position.

Knowledge of medical terminology

It is important for nursing assistants to be aware of the basic medical terminology, as they work with patients directly under the supervision of the nurse in charge and other doctors. This includes knowledge about infections, diseases and other medical conditions that can affect a patient's condition. While you can undergo professional training to become a nurse and develop this skill, you can also learn these terminologies on the job.

Some hospitals offer training to their staff to ensure they are aware of all the basic medical terminologies. You can mention any professional training you may have undergone or highlight the experience that you acquired at your previous job.

Patience

As a nursing assistant, you may interact with patients of different age groups suffering from different medical conditions. Some patients may be very sick or not in a condition to explain their issues properly and clearly. There may be elderly patients who require extra attention and care. It is important for nursing assistants to be patient, as they are required to understand the problems and provide comfort and care to ailing patients. You can mention this skill under your strengths in your resume.

Hygiene and sanitation

It is important for nursing assistants to be aware of all the required hygiene and sanitation practices followed by a hospital. This skill can help them prevent infections from spreading among patients. It also helps them understand how to dispose of medical waste and keep the patient areas clean. You can highlight this skill in your resume to show that you are aware of the importance of hygiene as a part of your job responsibilities and have proven experience in ensuring it.

Compassionate

You may come across patients with different ailments and emotional conditions during your job as a nursing assistant. As a healthcare professional, it is important for you to display compassion and kindness towards patients. It is also important to have empathy so that you can understand the situation of the patient and build an emotional connection with them.

Ability to follow instructions

Nursing assistants require following the instructions given by doctors and nurses and report to them about other information or assistance. It is important for them to follow instructions efficiently to ensure accurate and prompt treatments. It is also important that nursing assistants can follow standard operating procedures for every medical process like dressing wounds, applying injections or feeding patients.

Flexibility

There may be times during emergencies when a nursing assistant may be required to do longer shifts. They may also require reporting to work at irregular hours when there is a sudden increase in the patient influx. Sometimes, a nursing assistant may also be required to assist other nursing assistants in taking care of high-risk patients. This required nursing assistants to be flexible so that they can adapt to different situations easily. Listing this ability under your strengths can show the recruiter that you can adjust to different situations and continue performing well.

Optimistic outlook

While working as a nursing assistant, you may face various difficult situations, which may include patients with terminal diseases and fatalities. It is important for nursing assistants to maintain a positive outlook as it helps them offer assurance to patients and their family members. By maintaining a positive outlook, you can help patients feel better and can promote a positive environment in the hospital. You can list this skill to show the recruiter that you can maintain a positive mindset, even in adverse situations, and can help patients recover faster.

How To Improve Nursing Assistant Skills

Here are some steps that you can take to improve your skills as a nursing assistant:

1. Gain experience

One of the best ways to develop your skills is to gain experience as a nursing assistant. Look for jobs that match your skill set through online job boards and portals. If you are a fresher, it may take some time for you to understand the medical terminologies and processes. With experience, you can refine your skills and also train your team members subsequently.

2. Observe your seniors

A great way to develop your skills is to observe your seniors at work. You can observe the nurses you work with and learn the processes, terminologies and standard operating procedures. Whenever you face any difficulties or have doubts, you can ask your seniors for help or clarification. It may also be a good idea to look for a mentor who can guide you and give you feedback on your performance and guide you on the steps you can take to grow as a professional.

3. Practice your skills

You can improve your skills by practising them regularly. You can practise written and verbal communication by speaking more with your colleagues, patients and doctors. Consider asking doctors and nurses for feedback on medical reports that you create regularly. You can also practice medical terminologies by using them more frequently.

4. Be attentive

By being attentive and paying attention to every detail, you can improve your ability to notice any signs of changes or abnormalities in patients easily. You can develop this skill by observing your seniors and creating a checklist while examining a patient's condition. It is important to remove any distractions, such as your mobile phone while you are at work, to concentrate on the task.

5. Continue your education

An effective way to improve your skills as a nursing assistant is to undergo professional training. Once you gain experience as a nursing assistant, you can develop your skills through structured training and get promoted to a nurse and achieve professional growth. There are several diploma courses in nursing offered by different reputed institutions. You may be required to appear for an entrance exam where your experience as a nursing assistant may be useful.