Certified Nurse’s Assistant or Registered Nurse? The United States is fortunate to have many Certified Nurse’s Assistants and Registered Nurses in the country today. Both jobs play an important role in the health care system. Without these two jobs the healthcare system would be completely different and very unorganized. The health care system works as one big team. Working in this field is very beneficial to many people. CNAs and RNs are two of the largest groups of workers in the world today. Certified Nursing Assistants careers are quite different than one as a Registered Nurse.
Certified Nurse’s Assistants are different than Registered Nurses because of qualifications, pay and job descriptions. There are quite a few Certified Nursing Assistants in the nation today. Becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant is much easier than becoming a Registered Nurse. Certified nurses aide programs are much shorter and less vigorous than those of Registered Nurses. The Certified nurses aide program consists of a one hundred fifty hour course. The course includes seventy-five hours of class and lab work, and seventy-five clinical hours usually completed in a matter of eleven weeks.
The last step to becoming a Certified Nursing Assistant is to take a state exam and pass it with seventy percent correct. Becoming a Registered Nurse is much harder than becoming a Certified Nurses Assistant. Unlike CNAs, Registered Nurses must be graduated from high school with no less than a 2. 0 GPA. In all States students must graduate from an approved nursing program or college and pass a national licensing exam to become a registered nurse. The exam is known as the NCLEX-RN (Online Nursing). A nurse can be certified in more than one state if they take exams in multiple states or by endorsement.
All states require recertification periodically. Becoming a registered nurse typically takes Cairns 2 about four years. Registered Nurses are known as RN, BSN or ADNs. Not only do CNAs and RNs differ because of qualifications but also in pay. Certified Nursing Assistants pay is different depending on location. According to payscale. com on average CNAs are paid $9. 27 to $12. 20 an hour. Over time that pay can be raised to $12. 43 to $17. 93. Certified Nurses Aides can receive bonuses of ranging from $25. 32 to $395. 15. After calculating pay for one year CNAs can make between $19,756 to $27,048 (PayScale).
Certified Nurses Aide pay is not over all horrible, but could be a lot better for what they do. Registered Nurse’s are paid more fair than CNAs. Like Certified Nurse Aides, Registered Nurse’s pay varies on location. Registered Nurse pay is much higher than Certified Nurse Aide pay. Once again according to payscale nurses receive between $22. 07 to $30. 76 per hour. After a while nurse’s can be making from $30. 67 to as much as $45. 73. Bonuses for Registered Nurses are from $208. 80 to $1,716. Nurses receive an additional pay called profit sharing which can range from $308. 26 as year to $2,038.
Together all of this adds up to a decent sum of money, $46,796 to $67,082(PayScale). Not only is the pay drastically different between Assistants and Nurses, the job description is also. CNAs work in many places. CNAs work in nursing homes, assisted living houses, hospitals, long-term care and mental health facilities(Moore). Certified Nurses Assistants have many tasks to fulfill during their shift. CNAs assist with activities of daily living. They get them in and out of bed, bathe them, dress them, help them put lotion, help brush their teeth, helping them in the bathroom, and get them to all meals.
CNAs serve and clean up at all meals. Some additional job duties CNAs may have are cleaning rooms, making beds, escorting them, and helping with exercise(Moore). Some nurses may ask CNAs to take and record vital signs, and monitor a patients condition(Moore). A certified nursing assistant provides emotional support to patients and can be a source of socializing for them(Moore). Certified Nursing Assistants spend most of their time directly with the patients. Cairns 3 According to StudentDoc Registered Nurses make up the largest group of health care workers.
Most nurses work with patients and their families. Nurses are primary contact between patient and health care facilities. Nurses often preform patient evaluations, monitor and tracking vital signs, perform procedures such as IV placement, phlebotomy, and administering medication. Registered Nurses usually see patients more often than doctors do so they notice problems before doctors do. Nurses can develop patient care plans with the family members and patient. Registered nurse job descriptions can vary depending on their daily environment(U. S Department of Labor).
CNAs and RNs have different requirements, pay and duties within their day to day work. CNAs and RNs are two much needed jobs in the world today. CNAs and RNs both have enjoyable jobs. The medical field is a good one to go into. Going on to school and becoming a nurse is well worth it. Registered Nurses have an advantage in many ways over Certified Nurses Assistants. Registered Nurse’s have a better job, more preferable job than Certified Nurse’s Assistants. Works Cited Moore, Shelley. “Certified Nursing Assistant Job Description. ” eHow How to Do Just About Everything. eHow, 2010.
Web. 4 July 2010. <http://www. ehow. com/? facts_4795555_certified-nursing-assistant-job-description. html>. Online Nursing. “Registered Nurses – Qualifications, Education and Training. ” Online Nursing School Programs. Online Nursing, 2005. Web. 3 July 2010. <http://onlinenursingschoolprograms. com/? nursing-career/? registered-nurses-qualifications-training. htm>. PayScale. “ Hourly Rate Snapshot for Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) Job. ” PayScale. PayScale, The PayScale Report and People Like You are Trademarks of PayScale, Inc. , 13 July 2010. Web. 14 July 2010. lt;http://www. payscale. com/? research/? US/? Job=Certified_Nurse_Assistant_(CNA)/? Hourly_Rate>. – – -. “ Hourly Rate Snapshot for Registered Nurse (RN) Job . ” PayScale. PayScale, The PayScale Report and People Like You are Trademarks of PayScale, Inc. , 14 July 2010. Web. 15 July 2010. <http://www. payscale. com/? research/? US/? Job=Registered_Nurse_(RN)/? Hourly_Rate>. U. S Department of Labor. “Nursing Job Descriptions. ” StudentDoc. U. S Department of Labor, 4 Mar. 2010. Web. 5 July 2010. <http://www. studentdoc. com/? nursing-job-description. html>.
