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Are Care Assistants Nurses?

Are you wondering if being a health care assistant means being a nurse too? However, you are not alone; there are many people out there who think the same. Health care assistants and nurses both have important roles in the field of medicine. But they have their own roles and responsibilities.

Health care assistants can work in a hospital under the guidance of a nurse, doctor, or clinic. Whereas nursing care deals with child care, adult care, and mental health. Nurses can work in a hospital, the community, the police, or the prison service. Therefore, in this article, we will have a discussion on the topic – are care assistants nurses?

The topics are as follows:

What is a Health Care Assistant? (HCA)

A health care assistant (HCA) is a specialised medical profession that provides personal medical care services and nursing care to patients of all ages. A health care assistant works in a hospital, community center, nursing home, private home, or rehabilitation setting.
Health Care Assistant
The health care assistants work under the supervision of a qualified doctor or physicians and nurses. They need to have basic knowledge of medical practices and concepts. They also need to have excellent communication skills to talk to the patients and their families.

What is a Nurse?

A nurse is also a trained medical professional who provides care and support to individuals, families, and communities. They have the responsibility of assessing the patients, planning and implementing the medical plan, administering medication, monitoring, and providing emotional support to both patients and their families.
Nurses
Moreover, they work with the doctors or physicians to provide an optimal healthcare solution to all individuals. They can also specialise in various fields such as paediatrics, oncology, mental health, and emergency care.

What are the responsibilities of Health Care Assistant and Nurse?

The role of a Health Care Assistant is to provide the best medical care to an individual in the best medical setting. There are certain roles and responsibilities for a health care assistant that are listed below:

  1. Catering to the basic needs of the patient.
  2. Observing and reporting
  3. Tasks that are administrative and clerical.
  4. Measure, record, and report the vital signs.

A healthcare assistant does not require any specific qualifications, but they do require specific knowledge of the basic needs of a patient. They will have to work under the guidance of a certain medical professional.

They can assist the patients with general activities such as personal hygiene and feeding. However, they are not authorised to perform any complex medical procedures. They generally earn a lower salary as compared to nurses. The HCAs have to get permission to perform tasks on a patient.

Whereas, when it comes to nurses there are certain roles and responsibilities that have to be performed and abided by. They are as follows:

  1. Assess the patient’s history and health status.
  2. Make and implement the care plans created.
  3. Perform the medications as prescribed by the doctor or physicians.
  4. Monitor the patient’s blood pressure and heart rate.
  5. Maintain the medical records.

The nurses have to be locally registered to practise their duties. They perform tasks that are related to assessing the patients, performing diagnostics, and providing treatment. Moreover, they are authorised to perform a wide range of medical procedures and interventions.

They have the freedom to make decisions regarding patient care. Also, they earn a much higher salary as compared to health care assistants.

Conclusion to Are Care Assistants Nurses

In Conclusion, health care assistants are different from nurses. They work under the supervision of the doctor or physicians. However, the nurses are certified medical professionals who have the responsibility of assessing, diagnosing, and treating the patients.

They have knowledge much greater than that of a health care assistant (HCA). You can call us if you need service regarding both the HCA and nurses. Call us at 1800-212-6868 or fill out the form below so that our experts can get back to you.

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