Nursing Assistant: What is the cost of hiring?

Why hire a certified nursing assistant?

The need for new staff can affect both your existing team and your bottom line.

A great certified nursing assistant hire can:

• Provide hands-on health care to patients
• Assist patients with meals and taking vitals
• Assist staff with medical procedures

Deciding between a full-time vs freelance certified nursing assistant

Although freelance certified nursing assistants are not common, they do exist. Individuals can look into hiring freelance CNAs because they’re cheaper than going to a facility that employs full-time caretakers. Hospitals and health care facilities might hire freelancers if their current nursing staff can’t keep up with a temporarily increased workload to take some of the tasks off the full-time nurses’ schedules until things slow down. 

Hospitals and health care facilities should always have a few certified nursing assistants as full-time staff members. If their current nursing staff is consistently struggling to keep up, hiring more full-time employees may be necessary. 

What are the ranks of certified nursing assistants?

When it comes to the field of nursing, certified nursing assistants are at the bottom of the hierarchy because they support nurses. Some of the jobs in this field include:

• Advanced practice registered nurses: APRNs have earned a master’s degree in the nursing field. They are responsible for administering medications, referring patients to specialists, ordering and evaluating tests and diagnosing illnesses. 
• Registered nurses: A step below APRNs, registered nurses record medical histories for patients, monitor the patient’s status, administer medication and perform diagnostic tests. 
• Licensed practical nurses: The duties of a licensed practical nurse include taking blood pressure, starting IV drips, changing patients’ bandages after surgery and inserting catheters. 
• Certified nursing assistants: Certified nursing assistants have the most interaction with patients. They’re responsible for helping patients with daily tasks, including bathing, dressing, eating and using the restroom. Depending on the state, CNAs may also be able to administer medications. 

Where to find certified nursing assistants

To find the right certified nursing assistant for your facility, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

• Hang help wanted flyers. Posting notices about the open position can raise awareness of the job and encourage potential candidates to submit applications.
• Contact schools that offer classes for CNAs. Communicating with these schools can generate leads into candidates who’ve recently earned their nursing assistant certification. Reach out to these individuals to set up interviews. 
• Reach out to other facilities in the area. Other health care facilities in the city or state may have information about potential CNAs who are looking for employment in the area. 
• Post your job online. Try posting your certified nursing assistant job on Indeed to find and attract quality certified nursing assistant candidates.

Skills to look for in a great Certified Nursing Assistant

A great Certified Nursing Assistant candidate will have the following skills and attributes as well as work experience that reflects:

• Valid CNA license and diploma or GED
• Ability to speak with patients in their language
• Exceptional bedside manner
• Working long shifts while supervising several patients
• Attention to detail and timeliness
• Willingness to provide all patients with high-quality care

Writing a certified nursing assistant job description

Thoughtful descriptions are key to finding qualified certified nursing assistant candidates. A certified nursing assistant job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities and the required and preferred skills for the position. It’s also worth highlighting if the candidate will be working in a home or a facility.

When writing your certified nursing assistant job description, consider including some or all of the following keywords to improve the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms leading to clicks on certified nursing assistant jobs, according to Indeed data:

• CNA
• CNA nursing assistant CNA
• Nursing assistant
• Certified nursing assistant
• CNA nursing assistant
• Healthcare
• Travel CNA
• Caregiver
• Medical
• Assisted living

Interviewing certified nursing assistant candidates

Strong candidates for certified nursing assistant positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• Their ability to think on their feet and solve complex problems
• Proficiency with tools and meters used to assess patient vitals
• A strong, clean record of service in previous nursing roles

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of certified nursing assistant interview questions for examples (with sample answers).