Description
Provide hands-on daily care to older adults in long-term care, rehabilitation, or home settings under the direction of licensed nursing staff. Assist with activities of daily living, mobility, toileting, nutrition, hydration, safety, and comfort; monitor and report condition changes; support dementia care, skin integrity, fall prevention, and restorative programs. May perform delegated treatments, specimen collection, and basic measurements such as vital signs and intake/output.
- • Provide physical support to assist older adults with bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, and continence care.
- • Assist with safe mobility, transfers, and ambulation using gait belts, walkers, wheelchairs, or mechanical lifts.
- • Answer call lights promptly and determine resident needs.
- • Feed residents or assist with meals, following swallowing precautions and prescribed diet textures.
- • Measure and record food and fluid intake and output; report signs of dehydration or weight changes.
- • Obtain and record vital signs, pain levels, and blood glucose as delegated by nursing staff.
- • Perform skin checks; prevent pressure injuries by turning and repositioning per schedule and using offloading devices.
- • Provide incontinence care; supply, collect, and empty bedpans or urinals; perform catheter care as directed.
- • Collect urine, stool, or sputum specimens per protocol.
- • Apply clean dressings, compression stockings, or support bandages as directed.
- • Remind residents to take medications or supplements and report refusals or side effects.
- • Assist nurses with treatments or medical equipment (e.g., oxygen, nebulizers) as directed.
- • Change bed linens and make occupied and unoccupied beds.
- • Clean and disinfect resident rooms, bathrooms, and equipment; follow infection-control and isolation precautions.
- • Prepare and serve meal trays; set up adaptive utensils; manage dentures safely.
- • Support dementia care using redirection, reorientation, and calm de-escalation techniques; ensure wandering safety.
- • Communicate with residents to assess comfort, mood, and needs; provide companionship and emotional support.
- • Gather and relay information from residents, families, and the care team regarding care plans and preferences.
- • Record height and weight; monitor for unplanned weight loss and edema.
- • Assist with range-of-motion, strengthening, and restorative ambulation programs.
- • Transport residents to therapy, activities, testing, or appointments using wheelchairs or stretchers.
- • Position or hold residents for procedures, wound care, or examinations as directed.
- • Wash, groom, and shave residents; provide oral hygiene and denture care.
- • Prepare residents for examinations, treatments, or surgery, following preoperative instructions.
- • Stock and organize medical supplies, treatment carts, and personal hygiene items.
- • Set up and monitor bed or chair alarms, fall mats, and other fall-prevention measures as directed.
- • Explain basic care routines, safety instructions, or facility policies to residents and families; provide directions or visiting hours.
- • Document care, intake/output, and observations in electronic records per facility policy.
- • Assist with end-of-life comfort measures and postmortem care under nurse direction.
- • Transport specimens, laboratory items, or medications with proper documentation and handoff.
- • Implement bowel and bladder programs, including toileting schedules and prompted voiding.
- • Review dietary restrictions, allergies, and preferences to help ensure residents receive appropriate meals.
- • Lift or assist others to lift residents safely using proper body mechanics and team or mechanical transfers.
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O*NET occupational data (work activities, skills, knowledge).
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This site includes information from O*NET by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. Career Clutch has modified some of this information for student readability. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Last reviewed: Jan 2026
