Nursing Assistant

Program Courses
Abuse/Caring for the Individual
Introduces students to the concepts of family violence and abuse. Students learn to recognize possible signs of abuse and the actions to take (including legal requirements) if abuse is suspected.
Assisting with Personal Care
Explores what?s involved in daily personal practices such as bathing, toileting, grooming and dressing. Students learn about urinary & fecal elimination, monitoring/observations, complications, as well as assistive devices. Further topics include measuring height, weight and vital signs as well as the preparation and care required for a patient awaiting surgery.
Basic Medical Terminology/Anatomy & Physiology/Medical Conditions
Explores basic medical terms by combining medical prefixes, roots and suffixes. Students also study body structure and the functions of the 11 major organ systems. As students move on to medical conditions, they learn about common diseases and disorders of the 11 organ systems.
Community Home Management/Meal Preparation
Develop the skills needed to assist the patient/client with their nutritional needs, dietary requirements/special diets as well as learn proper feeding techniques, household management and household activities. Students have the opportunity to prepare different dietary meals. Enteral Nutrition (tube feeding) and Intravenous Therapy is discussed along with guidelinesfor assisting patient/client with medications.
Computer Fundamentals
Provides a basic understanding of common computer applications, helps develop keyboarding skills as well as introduces students to the Windows operating system, including Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook. Students also learn to use the Internet and how to manage files and folders.
First Aid/CPR/NVCI
Positions a person to perform chest compressions and the exact process for properly administering the technique, as well as mouth-to-mouth rescue breathing and how to use an AED. The emphasis in Non-Violent Crisis Intervention (NVCI) training is on early intervention and non-physical methods for preventing or managing disruptive behavior. Personal Safety Techniques for staff are also demonstrated and practiced.
Ethics & Legalities of the Support Worker
Explores the goal and main responsibilities of the support worker. Students are introduced to the Canadian health care system and how to manage the stress, time and other challenges faced by healthcare professionals. Students identify the principles of health care ethics and legislation including understanding the patient?s/client?s rights.
Interpersonal Communication Skills
Explores the importance of communication and interpersonal skills in establishing and maintaining effective relationships with the patients/clients. Familiarizes students with different workplace settings, the individuals that you work with, the care plan process and confidentiality in the workplace.
Mental Health/Cognitive Impairment
Introduces students to common psychiatric and mental health disorders, substance abuse and the various ways that Health Care Aides can support patients or clients living with these disorders. Students learn the differences between confusion, delirium and dementia (e.g. Alzheimer?s Disease) and the mental changes that are associated with them. Other related topics include speech, language, hearing, vision disorders, developmental disabilities and the impact these conditions have on the patient and their families.
Palliative Care/Promoting Client Well-Being
Introduces students to the concepts and techniques for promoting overall health and wellness. Topics include pain management, sleep disorders and their impact on the overall health of the patient. Students learn about the various types of wounds as well as possible complications, preventative measures and treatment options. Heat and cold therapy and the guidelines for their use and application will also be discussed. In Palliative Care, students explore ideas and theories that help better assist patients who are dying while providing support to their families.
Safety/Mobility/Infection
Explores best practices for patient/client safety and measures needed to protect the people in an aide?s care. Students learn proper transfer and mobility techniques used in today?s healthcare system. Time is spent in the lab practicing transfers and mobilization with the use of specialized equipment. Students learn common aseptic practices, chain of infection, personal protective equipment and how the procedures can be applied in clinical practice.
Career Preparation
Prepares students to conduct a thorough employment search strategy that incorporates personal marketing, assessment of skill inventories and an understanding of the job market in the relevant industry/sector. Throughout this course, students create or improve their resume, practice interview techniques, learn networking skills and how to successfully search for career-related employment.
Computer Applications
This course prepares learners to perform functions common to Windows 10, Microsoft Office, and Google applications. Elements include the ability to create and manipulate Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook; Google Docs, Sheets and Gmail applications; modify the display of toolbars and other on-screen elements, use online help, and perform file management, editing, formatting and printing functions common to most Windows applications.
Medical Terminology, Basic Human Structure, Diseases and Disorders
Introduces students to medical terminology, anatomy and physiology of the human body. Students learn the basic fundamentals of medical terminology including word components, definitions, spelling and pronunciation, as well as basic anatomy and physiology.
Health Unit Clerk Procedures
Provides the knowledge needed to accurately manage the admissions, transfer and discharge procedures for patients, including post-mortem procedures, recording vital signs, ordering supplies, filing, infection control and emergencies.
Orientation to Hospitals, Medical Centres & Health Care
Introduces students to the Health Care Delivery System ? departments and services, members of the health care team, facility communication systems and client care management.
The Patient’s Electronic Record or Paper Chart
Provides the knowledge needed to understand medications and classifications to allow students to proficiently transcribe doctor?s orders, nursing treatment orders, dietary orders, medication orders, laboratory orders, diagnostic imaging orders and other miscellaneous orders. Students learn to record telephoned laboratory results. Special focus is placed on the patient chart and the assembly and maintenance of the forms.
Personal and Professional Skills
Examines the process of communication and interpersonal behavior and communication skills.
Keyboarding
Learners will learn the fundamental skills to become proficient in keyboarding techniques, achieving 40 words per minute with three errors or less.
Skills Lab 1 and 2
In this course, learners will apply what they have learned in previous courses by practicing applicable procedures.