Nurse Aide

A nurse aide works with nurses to help with hands-on patient care.

NOC Code: 3413

Job Duties

A nurse aide works with nurses to help with hands-on patient care.  You may work for a hospital or other health care facility. Unlike personal support workers (PSWs), you cannot work in a patient's home. You may also be called a health care aide, hospital attendant, or nursing assistant.

Generally, nurse aides:

  • Feed, bathe and care for patients.
  • Lift and transport patients manually and using machines.
  • Take and record vital signs and maintain patients' charts.
  • Understand and follow emergency procedures.
  • Give oral medication.
  • Carry messages, reports, requisitions, and specimens between departments
  • Maintain inventory of supplies
  • Perform maintenance tasks such as assisting with the setup and maintenance of traction equipment, cleaning and sterilizing, repairing, assembling, and operating job-related equipment. 

Source: HRSDC

Job Requirements

Education

This job requires: High School

Comparison with other jobs in this profession
JobLevel of Education Required
Blood Donor Clinic AssistantHigh School
Early Childhood Educator AssistantCollege or University
Health EducatorCollege or University
Nurse AideHigh School
Personal Support WorkerHigh School

Experience

This job requires 0 - 2 years of work experience.

Comparison with other jobs in this profession
JobYears of Work Experience Required
Blood Donor Clinic Assistant0 - 2
Early Childhood Educator Assistant0 - 2
Health Educator2 - 5
Nurse Aide0 - 2
Personal Support Worker0 - 2

Source: HRSDC

Essential Skills

As a nurse aide, you need to:

  • Speak, read and write English. 
  • Understand and use medical terminology.
  • Communicate with patients and other medical staff.
  • Assess patients' needs after speaking with patients and their families.
  • Write patient reports.
  • Be strong enough to move patients.
  • Comfort and talk with patients and their families.

Source: Ontario Skills Passport

Language Skills

You need to communicate in person, on the phone and in writing with patients, their families and other medical staff. You also need to take notes and write reports about your clients.

Labour Market Information

Trends

In Canada, in addition to a growing population, the population is also aging – many people are above age 65. This means that the health care system needs more nurse aides and other types of patient assistants However, some employers may prefer to hire Personal Support Workers because they can work in health care facilities and also work in patients' homes.

Prospects

The work prospects for this job are: GOOD

Comparison with other jobs in this profession
JobWork Prospects
Blood Donor Clinic AssistantGood
Early Childhood Educator AssistantGood
Health EducatorGood
Nurse AideGood
Personal Support WorkerGood

Wages

The average hourly wage for this job is: C$19.30/hour.

Comparison with other jobs in this profession
JobAverage Wage/Hour
Blood Donor Clinic Assistant$17.00
Early Childhood Educator Assistant$16.41
Health Educator$21.75
Nurse Aide$19.30
Personal Support Worker$14.85

Source: HRSDC

Retraining

Educational Programs

These links will give you a list of related educational programs or where you can search for them. There may be other schools that have similar programs, such as private career colleges. You may be able to get advanced standing.

Bridging Programs

Here is a list of some bridging programs. These programs can help you assess your education and skills, get practical training or improve your language skills so that you can work in your field.

Language Training

Here is a list of some language training programs, such as Enhanced Language Training (ELT) and Occupation Specific Language Training (OSLT).

Work Experience Programs

Some bridging programs in this field include co-operative (co-op) work experience.

Voluntary Membership Opportunities

Helpful Links

The data in this profile is provided for informational purposes only. Some of the information may have changed since this profile was written. Please check the source for the most up-to-date information.