Chapter 3: The Nursing Assistant
1. Certification: Official recognition by a state that standards or requirements have been met.
2. Endorsement: A state recognizes the certificate, license, or registration issued by another state;
reciprocity or equivalency.
3. Equivalency: Another word for endorsement.
4. Job Description: A document that describes what the agency expects you to do.
5. Nursing Task: Nursing care or a nursing function, procedure, activity, or work that can be delegated to
nursing assistants when it does not require a nurse's professional knowledge or judgment.
6. Reciprocity: Another word for endorsement.
7. CNA: Certified Nursing Assistant; Certified Nurse Aide.
8. LNA: Licensed Nurse Assistant.
9. LPN: Licensed Practical Nurse.
10. LVN: Licensed Vocational Nurse.
11. NATCEP: Nursing Assistant Training and Competency Evaluation Program.
12. NCSBN: National Council of State Boards of Nursing.
13. OBRA: Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987.
, 14. RN: Registered Nurse.
15. RNA: Registered Nurse Aide.
16. SRNA: State Registered Nurse Aide.
17. STNA: State Tested Nurse Aide.
History and Trends Affecting Nursing Assistants
1. Until the 1980s, nursing assistants received on-the-job training without formal education
requirements.
2. Before the 1980s, team nursing was common, where a team leader (RN) assigned care to nurses and
nursing assistants based on their education and experience.
3. Primary nursing emerged in the 1980s, where nurses were responsible for providing individualized
care to patients.
4. Many hospitals began hiring only RNs, while nursing centers relied more heavily on nursing assistants
for resident care.
5. Home care increased during the 1980s as hospitals aimed to reduce costs by shortening hospital
stays.
Efforts to Reduce Costs
1. Hospital closings
2. Hospital mergers
3. Health care system changes
4. Managed care
5. Staffing mix adjustments
6. Patient-focused care
1. Certification: Official recognition by a state that standards or requirements have been met.
2. Endorsement: A state recognizes the certificate, license, or registration issued by another state;
reciprocity or equivalency.
3. Equivalency: Another word for endorsement.
4. Job Description: A document that describes what the agency expects you to do.
5. Nursing Task: Nursing care or a nursing function, procedure, activity, or work that can be delegated to
nursing assistants when it does not require a nurse's professional knowledge or judgment.
6. Reciprocity: Another word for endorsement.
7. CNA: Certified Nursing Assistant; Certified Nurse Aide.
8. LNA: Licensed Nurse Assistant.
9. LPN: Licensed Practical Nurse.
10. LVN: Licensed Vocational Nurse.
11. NATCEP: Nursing Assistant Training and Competency Evaluation Program.
12. NCSBN: National Council of State Boards of Nursing.
13. OBRA: Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1987.
, 14. RN: Registered Nurse.
15. RNA: Registered Nurse Aide.
16. SRNA: State Registered Nurse Aide.
17. STNA: State Tested Nurse Aide.
History and Trends Affecting Nursing Assistants
1. Until the 1980s, nursing assistants received on-the-job training without formal education
requirements.
2. Before the 1980s, team nursing was common, where a team leader (RN) assigned care to nurses and
nursing assistants based on their education and experience.
3. Primary nursing emerged in the 1980s, where nurses were responsible for providing individualized
care to patients.
4. Many hospitals began hiring only RNs, while nursing centers relied more heavily on nursing assistants
for resident care.
5. Home care increased during the 1980s as hospitals aimed to reduce costs by shortening hospital
stays.
Efforts to Reduce Costs
1. Hospital closings
2. Hospital mergers
3. Health care system changes
4. Managed care
5. Staffing mix adjustments
6. Patient-focused care
