CNA Professional Career Life Lessons

Those considering a career as a certified nursing assistant might be drawn to a career in medicine and need a place to start. Others heed the call to serve and a position as a nurse’s aide fulfills that calling. Days spent in the service of others who truly depend on you CNA be both rewarding and frustrating, yet most who enter the profession wouldn’t trade those experiences and difficult lessons learned for anything.

One of the key lessons that one learns as a CNA is that relationships matter. From the bonds formed with patients, to the lifelong friendships with other staff members, to the respect earned from the doctors and medical staff, each of these relationships contributes to job satisfaction and an elevated feeling of self-worth.

There are few other professions where so much is needed by so many. It is a profession where even the smallest kindness is rewarded in ways that are too numerous to count. Playing a pivotal role in the quality of life for those in need is life-enriching and empowers one to do more than ever thought possible. Relationship-building skills are essential in any profession, and especially so as a nurse’s aide. The strong bonds that develop are the glue that holds everything together when it seems that everything is going wrong.

Another lesson that CNAs learn is how to calmly and effectively adapt to any situation that arises. This survival skill serves CNAs well on the job and in life in general. To be able to assess the situation quickly while thinking on one’s feet and managing a dozen patient residents at the same time is the kind of multi-tasking that translates well to personal life situations. Knowing that so many people are depending on the nurse’s aide to figure it out and make it work develops confidence in one’s ability to handle any of life’s crises at home that seem to occur on a weekly basis.

The ability to persevere no matter what happens is one of those life skills that can’t be taught, it must be earned through overcoming obstacles that seem insurmountable at the time. CNAs face these challenges almost on a daily basis. Whether one is faced with an unplanned disruption to patient schedules, lack of support due to absenteeism, or fixing careless mistakes made by other CNAs, delivering consistent care in the face of these obstacles gives one the ability to endure most anything that life throws at them.

It is the toughest parts of being a CNA that are, in the end, the most personally rewarding. If one takes a moment and reflects on these lessons learned, it becomes crystal clear that these are the very life lessons that enrich our lives and enable us to improve the quality of life for ourselves and our own families. And the beauty of it all is that these lessons are learned while dedicating our professional careers to the service of others which is reward in and of itself.

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What Kind of CNA Salary Can You Expect?

CNA TRAINING INSTITUTE,INC

140 Eldridge Road # G, Sugar Land, TX 77478

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Here in Texas, the demand for certified nursing assistants is quite high.  A growing elderly population and greater access to healthcare brought about by the Affordable Health Care Act are fueling an increase in the need for qualified nursing assistants.

According to highcharts.com, the national salary range for certified nurse’s aides ranges from $25,349 on the low side to $37,473 per year with a median annual salary of $30,855.  These figures are countrywide and include nurse assistants with little or no experience on up to aides with several years’ experience.

Regarding total compensation, bonuses do not add much to the national median annual salary.  However, healthcare benefits are a significant portion of total compensation provided by employers and must be factored into an evaluation of a compensation package.  Other benefits which are available to certified nursing assistants include social security, retirement savings plans such as 401k and 403b plans, pensions and time off.  These benefits make up a substantial portion of a pay package for CNAs and, compared with other entry-level careers, are significant and noteworthy.

Even better news for students that are currently enrolled in CNA classes in the Houston area is the fact that Texas’ salaries a bit higher than the national average and Houston salaries are near the top of the range of Texas salaries.  So if you are enrolled in training at the Consolidated Nurses Aide Training Institute, your prospects for earning a good starting salary are good.  Current data provided by salary.com and updated on January 31, 2017 show that median salaries in the state start at $21,771 in the Midland-Odessa region and top out at over $31,000 (median for all levels of experience) in the Houston area.

If you are a CNA in Texas, Houston is the place to be.  Salaries vary widely across the state and nationally and depend on level of experience and other factors.  But it is good to know that demand in Houston is great and keeps CNA salary levels on the high side compared with other places you might choose to work.

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Health systems are evolving and advancing their strategies to address social determinants of health

More than a decade ago, family physician Jeffrey Brenner, inspired by police department strategies to map crime data to identify “hot spots,” began to use ambulance records and emergency department (ED) data to predict and aim to address health care hot spots. Health care hot spots are areas where many people with complex problems frequently come to the ED. They often have conditions that could be better managed by primary care clinicians, social workers, and behavioral health professionals. This population makes up only about 5 percent of patients, but accounts for 50 percent of health care spending. As the FFS system continues to shift toward one based on value, many health systems are aligning financial incentives to keeping patients healthier. This means a growing number of hospitals are focusing on factors outside of the health care system or clinical models of care that influence health, such our environment, access to nutritious food, stable housing, and other related factors.

Brenner’s work began in Camden, New Jersey and lives on today through the Camden Coalition. Now, he and his team are trying to disseminate their learnings and leading practices around the country. The Patient Care Intervention Center in Texas is trying out these strategies on its sickest and most isolated patients. Its program is built around collaboration between city and county agencies, hospitals, and nonprofits. Many of the hospitals in Houston and the fire department and paramedics combine their data in one database so that health IT professionals can find the super users of health care. Staff from the program help the super users make and get to doctor appointments, get visits by home health aides, and get their homes cleaned and utility bills paid. The program has been in place for two years; costs for the target population have decreased 83 percent, and hospital visits have declined by 70 percent.

A key question is what role each stakeholder should play in addressing the social determinants of health. Many experiments and efforts to advance care delivery and payment reforms that reduce costs and improve health outcomes are still focused on quality and cost measures that reflect traditional health care services. This uncertainty is not stopping many innovative health systems, health plans, and nonprofits from piloting programs and sharing what they learn. For example, Trinity Health has introduced an annual pay incentive for executives based on improving certain population health metrics, such as reduced rates of obesity, tobacco use, and hospital readmissions. These interventions often require addressing social determinants of health, such as helping patients access healthy foods and getting counseling through community health workers. Financial targets have less weight in the incentive programs than the total health metrics. Mercy Health and Henry Ford Health System have similar incentive programs that align with population health metrics.

Read the full article here:  http://blogs.deloitte.com/centerforhealthsolutions/health-systems-are-evolving-and-advancing-their-strategies-to-address-social-determinants-of-health/