NSXNational Skills ExchangeSign in
Back to Framework

Nursing Assistants

SOC 31-1131.00Job Zone 3 · Medium Preparation

Provide or assist with basic care or support under the direction of onsite licensed nursing staff. Perform duties such as monitoring of health status, feeding, bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, or ambulation of patients in a health or nursing facility.

Context coveredLong-term care, skilled nursing, assisted living, hospital med-surg, home health, and rehabilitation settings; CNA certification through senior CNA / restorative aide roles.

Sources:O*NET v30.2O*NET Resource Center — Occupational Information Network, v30.2 (Sept 2025). Opens in new tab.SkillsCrosswalkSkillsCrosswalk — O*NET enrichment + adjacency index. Opens in new tab.
Emerging
Entry / Apprentice
  1. Activities of daily living (bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting) — provide to assigned residents under a nurse's review.
  2. Vital signs (temperature, blood pressure, pulse, respiration) — measure and record accurately on stable patients.
  3. Patient transfers (bed to chair, chair to commode) — perform with proper body mechanics under a senior CNA's coaching.
  4. Infection control practices (hand hygiene, gloves, isolation precautions) — apply consistently across patient contacts.
  5. Charting and care-plan documentation — complete legibly per facility standards on each shift.
  6. Mealtime assistance and intake/output recording — perform reliably for dependent residents.
  7. Mobility support (gait belts, transfer boards, wheelchairs) — use correctly for assigned patients.
  8. Skin observations (redness, bruising, pressure points) — recognize and report to the charge nurse.
  9. Resident call lights — respond within facility-target times across an assigned hall.
  10. Behavior and orientation changes — flag to the licensed nurse rather than interpreting independently.
Developing
Mid-level / Established
  1. Multi-patient assignments — organize and prioritize across an 8-resident hallway on a routine shift.
  2. Restorative-care tasks (range-of-motion exercises, ambulation programs) — perform per the care plan independently.
  3. Common medical equipment (Hoyer lifts, oxygen concentrators, suction units) — operate safely under nurse direction.
  4. Subtle changes in resident status — recognize and escalate appropriately to the licensed nurse.
  5. End-of-life and dementia-care techniques — apply with patience and dignity on assigned residents.
  6. New CNAs on shift — orient on hall routines and resident-specific care during their first week.
  7. Family-member interactions — communicate respectfully and route clinical questions to the nurse.
  8. Hospice-eligible residents — support per the care plan with sensitivity to comfort-care goals.
  9. Charting in the electronic medical record — complete required fields without nurse follow-up.
  10. Care-plan changes — implement on a familiar resident within the same shift.
Proficient
Senior / Expert IC
  1. Complex residents (multi-comorbid, high-acuity) — assist and assess across an acute-care or specialty unit.
  2. Care-plan input and updates — contribute substantively in interdisciplinary care conferences.
  3. Senior or lead-CNA responsibilities — guide hallway teams during a shift on staffing or assignment changes.
  4. Difficult family conversations — handle initial responses on common concerns and route to the nurse.
  5. Resident-rights and dignity issues — identify and report through the facility's grievance process.
  6. Quality measures (pressure ulcers, falls, weight loss) — recognize trends and surface to nursing leadership.
  7. New-grad CNAs and aides — mentor formally during 2–4 week orientations.
  8. Equipment troubleshooting (failed lifts, oxygen alarms) — handle in real time without delaying patient care.
  9. Specialty-area certifications (restorative aide, medication aide, dementia care) — maintain and apply within scope.
  10. Cross-shift handoffs and resident-status reports — deliver to incoming staff with clarity and completeness.
Advanced
Lead / Principal / Executive
  1. Hallway or unit leadership — coordinate CNA staffing, breaks, and assignments across a shift.
  2. Restorative-care program — design and audit on a unit in partnership with rehab and nursing.
  3. New-hire CNA training — own the floor-portion of orientation across the facility.
  4. Quality-improvement projects (pressure-ulcer reduction, falls prevention) — lead with administration support.
  5. Survey readiness (state, CMS) — prepare the unit and represent staff during walkthroughs.
  6. Resident-family councils — represent CNA staff in joint meetings with leadership and family advocates.
  7. Career-pathway coaching (LPN, RN bridge programs) — mentor staff who want to advance.
  8. Facility-wide programs (dementia care, restorative aide, palliative care) — coordinate with nursing and rehab leadership.
  9. Regulatory readiness on care-plan documentation — own across a unit during survey cycles.
  10. Senior advocate for CNA-staff voice — represent on committees and in leadership-level conversations.

AI-at-Work Competency Framework

Sources:Anthropic Economic IndexAnthropic Economic Index — release_2026_03_24. Opens in new tab.Jadhav & Danve, 2026Skill Automation Feasibility Index — Jadhav & Danve, 2026 (arXiv:2604.06906). Opens in new tab.WEF Skills TaxonomyWEF Skills Taxonomy 2021 — Building a Common Language for Skills at Work. Opens in new tab.

A 4-level framework describing how a worker at each mastery level uses, directs, and evaluates AI tools in this occupation. Each statement cites its evidence inline. Subscribe for $19.99/mo to read the full framework — or sign in if you have a subscription.

  1. Emerging
  2. Developing
  3. Proficient
  4. Advanced
Monthly subscription · Stripe-hosted · unlocks AI-at-Work and Pathsmith™ Durable Skills across the full library

Pathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework

Sources:Pathsmith™ Durable SkillsPathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework — America Succeeds + CompTIA. Opens in new tab.O*NET v30.2O*NET Resource Center — Occupational Information Network, v30.2 (Sept 2025). Opens in new tab.
Subscriber feature

Ten durable-skill domains mapped to four proficiency levels for this occupation. Subscribe to unlock the full Pathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework across all 1,016 occupations.

Monthly subscription · Stripe-hosted · unlocks AI-at-Work and Pathsmith™ Durable Skills across the full library
Show O*NET source anchors49 anchors · skillscrosswalk.com

O*NET enrichment · skillscrosswalk.com

Suggest an O*NET correction

Source anchors that ground each statement

Related titles
Birth Attendant · Certified Medication Aide (CMA) · Certified Nurse Aide (CNA) · Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) · Certified Nurses Aide (CNA) · Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) · Certified Nursing Attendant (CNA) · Certified Residential Medication Aide (CRMA) · Clinical Assistant · Competency Evaluated Nurse Aide (CENA) · First Aid Attendant · Geriatric Nursing Assistant (GNA)
RAPIDS apprenticeships
—
O*NET skills
Service OrientationSocial PerceptivenessActive ListeningMonitoringCritical ThinkingCoordinationReading ComprehensionSpeaking
Knowledge domains
Customer and Personal ServiceAdministration and ManagementEnglish LanguagePublic Safety and SecurityMedicine and DentistryEducation and TrainingTherapy and Counseling
Abilities
Problem SensitivityOral ComprehensionNear VisionOral ExpressionSpeech RecognitionStatic StrengthWritten ComprehensionWritten ExpressionDeductive ReasoningInformation Ordering
Work styles
EmpathyCooperationDependabilityOptimismAttention to DetailIntegrity
Technology
Business intelligence and data analysis softwareBilling and invoicing softwareMedical softwareVideo conferencing softwareData base user interface and query softwareSpreadsheet softwareOffice suite softwareElectronic mail softwareWord processing softwareInternet browser software
Tasks · seed anchors for statements
  1. Turn or reposition bedridden patients.
  2. Answer patient call signals, signal lights, bells, or intercom systems to determine patients' needs.
  3. Feed patients or assist patients to eat or drink.
  4. Measure and record food and liquid intake or urinary and fecal output, reporting changes to medical or nursing staff.
  5. Provide physical support to assist patients to perform daily living activities, such as getting out of bed, bathing, dressing, using the toilet, standing, walking, or exercising.
  6. Document or otherwise report observations of patient behavior, complaints, or physical symptoms to nurses.
  7. Remind patients to take medications or nutritional supplements.
  8. Review patients' dietary restrictions, food allergies, and preferences to ensure patient receives appropriate diet.
CIP education codes
51.260151.390251.3999

Sources: O*NET v30.2 (CC BY 4.0), SkillsCrosswalk.com, LER.me®, Anthropic Economic Index, SAFI (Jadhav & Danve, 2026), WEF Skills Taxonomy 2021, Pathsmith™ Durable Skills Framework. © 2026 EBSCOed.