In the Know
It can be hard to always know whether or not your nurse aides act in a compassionate manner while on the job. That’s why it’s so important to encourage compassionate behavior. By studying our newly added inservice called “The Caring Qualities of a CNA,” your nurse aides will learn everything they can do to have more empathy, compassion, patience, dedication and respect for their clients.
The dictionary defines compassion as “a deep awareness of the suffering of another, coupled with the wish to relieve that suffering.” So, for someone to be compassionate, he or she must be able to put themselves in someone else’s shoes, AND act on his or her desire to lessen that person’s suffering or unhappiness.
It can be hard to always know whether or not your nurse aides act in a compassionate manner while on the job. That’s why it’s so important to encourage compassionate behavior. By studying our newly added inservice called “The Caring Qualities of a CNA,” your nurse aides will learn everything they can do to have more empathy, compassion, patience, dedication and respect for their clients.
A Peek Inside the Inservice:
Whether or not you can TEACH compassion is a question that is hard to answer. However, as a nurse educator, you can ENCOURAGE your nurse aides to be more compassionate. Try sharing the following tips with your CNAs:
- Remember to put your clients’ needs before your own.
- Treat people fairly and with respect and dignity.
- Show kindness without expecting rewards.
- Get to know your clients.
- Comfort your client’s family members who may be stressed and/or grieving.
- Be sensitive and allow people to vent their frustrations.
- Listen when people confide in you.
- Be friendly to any new co-workers who seem to be overwhelmed.
- Help a co-worker without being asked.
- Try to understand someone you don’t like or with whom you disagree.
- Accept people for who they are–faults and all!
