How to Become an Aged Care Nurse, Career Near Me

How to Become an Aged Care Nurse, Career Near Me

Aged care nurses, also known as geriatric nurses or gerontological nurses, are healthcare providers who specialize in caring for the elderly. Becoming an aged care nurse could be a rewarding career path for you if you enjoy working with seniors and older patients with special medical needs. To get started, earn your nursing degree from an accredited university, community college, or private nursing school, then work as an RN (Registered Nurse) or PN (Practical Nurse) for at least 2 years to qualify to receive your gerontological nursing certification. Throughout the course of your education, you’ll learn key skills and principles that will help shape you into a responsible, compassionate caregiver.

Method 1 Fulfilling the Basic Educational Requirements.
1. Get your high school diploma. To become an aged care nurse, you’ll need to hold a minimum of an associate degree in nursing. The first step along your path will therefore be to finish high school. Apply yourself and study hard to improve your chances of getting into a good school after graduation.
Pay particular attention to subjects like biology, chemistry, and mathematics. Nurses must have a solid practical understanding of the sorts of concepts outlined in these disciplines.
You may also be able to gain admission to certain nursing programs with a GED.
2. Earn a degree in nursing from an accredited institution. Look for a university, community college, or private nursing school in your area that’s known for having a strong nursing program. Upon acceptance, you’ll have the option of either seeking your 2-year Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) or committing to a 4-year Bachelor of Nursing Science (BSN) program.
If you plan on working in a hospital, retirement home, or similar facility, keep in mind that many employers prefer that their on-staff nurses have their BSNs.
If time or money is a limiting factor for your education, consider completing a practical nursing course at your local community college or technical school. PNs are similar to RNs, only with a narrower range of responsibilities and a slightly lower average hourly wage.
Nursing school will introduce you to the fundamental skills, concepts, and principles that all caregivers must possess in order to do their jobs safely, effectively, and with due diligence.
3. Pass your NCLEX exam. The National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) is a test that all entry-level nursing students must pass before they can officially begin working as registered nurses. To sign up for the exam and secure your seat, submit an application to the nursing regulatory body for the city, state, or territory where you want to be licensed. They’ll respond with a list of times and locations that you can choose from when scheduling your exam.
It costs $200 USD to register for the NCLEX ($360 CAD). You may also encounter other associated costs, such as a separate licensure fee, depending on the exact guidelines of the regulating body in your area.
The NCLEX covers several different categories (including physiological adaptation, management of care, reduction of risk potential, safety and infection control, pharmacological and parenteral therapies, basic care and comfort, psychosocial integrity, and health promotion and maintenance), and consists of multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, and graphic-based questions.
To get a passing score, you must correctly answer the minimum number of questions for your specific tract (75 for RN, 85 for PN).
Tip: Nursing textbooks, study guides, and online practice exams are all valuable resources that can help you ace the NCLEX on your first try.
4. Work as an RN for at least 2 years. Once you have your RN degree under your belt, your next step will be to rack up a minimum of 2 years of full-time professional experience, plus 2,000 hours of clinical practice within the domain of geriatric nursing. Make the most of this time, as it presents you with a valuable opportunity to refine your general skill set before applying it in a more specific setting.
Aged care nurses are employed by hospitals, nursing homes, retirement centers, memory care facilities, and private individuals, so you’ll have plenty of options when it comes time to begin looking for places to carry out your clinical training.
Applying for a position in one of the aforementioned facilities will make it possible for you to complete your clinical obligations at the same time that you’re working towards your 2 years of RN experience.
5. Obtain your gerontological nursing certification. Following 2 years of full-time work as an RN and 2,000 hours of specialized geriatric experience, you'll officially qualify for board certification. The certification process typically involves passing a thorough exam designed to prove your competency as an aged care provider, as well as paying an initial certification fee.
If you live in the U.S., you can acquire a specialized certification like the Gerontological Nursing Certification (RN-BC) or Adult-Gerontology Primary Care Nurse Practitioner Certification (AGPCNP-BC) through the American Nurses Credentialing Center (ANCC).
Certifications awarded through the ANCC are valid for 5 years. You can maintain your credentials by following the necessary renewal requirements outlined by the organization at the time that you receive your certification.

Method 2 Implementing Your Skills in the Workplace.
1. Assist physicians with important tests and procedures. Be prepared to lend a hand with routine tasks like starting IVs, performing physical examinations, collecting biological samples, and administering vaccinations. Along with these duties, you’ll also be expected to accurately monitor, record, and interpret your patients’ symptoms and vital signs and report them to their doctor and other caregivers.
Most geriatric nursing positions require a familiarity with common medical devices and equipment, which you should already possess thanks to your education and clinical training.
2. Administer and track your patients’ medication. It’s not uncommon for geriatric patients to be on many different medications at once (dozens, in some cases). For this reason, it’s crucial that you be able to both draft and read medication charts carefully in order to keep up with what medications your patients are taking and how often they need them.
The responsibility of handling the specifics of your patients’ medication, including type, dosage, and timing, will fall to you and the other nurses on staff. You can’t rely on your patients to remember everything they’re taking, especially if they suffer from memory loss or other cognitive issues related to declining health.
When it comes to administering medication, it’s not being melodramatic to say that your patients’ lives are literally in your hands.
3. Help your patients with their daily needs. As an aged care nurse, much of your work will revolve around providing assistance with ordinary tasks like eating, bathing, dressing, and using the bathroom. In addition, you may also play a role in exercising your patients or performing basic massage or wound treatment techniques to alleviate their discomfort.
Some of these duties may occasionally be unpleasant. Whenever you’re asked to do something you’d rather not do, try to remember that your patients depend on your help to lead a somewhat normal life.
Tip: Make yourself available for your patients when they need you, but motivate and encourage them to do as much for themselves as they can. This will allow them to retain some of their independence and boost their sense of self-worth.
4. Learn to recognize the signs of elder abuse. Sadly, not all geriatric patients are treated with the respect and dignity they deserve. While visiting your patients, keep an eye out for unusual or unexplained bruises, wounds, vital readings, or other suspicious signs. These could be the result of abuse or neglect at the hands of a family member or another caregiver.
Elder abuse doesn’t always take the form of violence. It could also include physical mistreatment, such as unnecessary restraint, force-feeding, or improper use of medication, as well as mental and emotional distress caused by yelling, threatening, mocking, or abandonment.
If you think one of your patients might be a victim of abuse, contact the National Center on Elder Abuse to report your case or find more information about what you can do to keep it from happening again.
In some cases, elder abuse may even be committed by one of the patient's own caregivers. If you're faced with the difficult prospect of reporting a coworker or supervisor, be aware that it's possible to file your report anonymously or speak to a facility administrator under the promise of confidentiality.

Method 3 Meeting the Personal and Emotional Demands of the Position.
1. Do your best to keep a positive, upbeat attitude. Show up to work every day with a cheerful heart and a willingness to serve. A smile and some friendly conversation can do a lot to lift your patients’ spirits, which in turn may improve their condition or accelerate their recovery.
You don’t have to be a ray of sunshine to succeed as an aged care nurse. You just need to be capable of maintaining a polite and professional demeanor no matter what challenges you face.
Try not to let the pressures of your position get you down. In the healthcare world, how you respond to tough situations is just as important as what you know.
2. Refine your bedside manner to improve the quality of care you provide. Elderly patients and are often in need of intensive emotional as well as physical comfort. Make an effort to be patient, understanding, and compassionate, even during the most trying times. Doing so will put your patients at ease and keep the channels of communication open, ultimately making things easier on both of you.
Take the time to talk to your patients and develop a rapport. Establishing a more personal connection with them by doing things like making small talk or asking them about their lives will go a long way towards earning their trust and making them comfortable.
It’s also important to be tactful when discussing your patients’ conditions, symptoms, or prognoses with them or their families.
Warning: Treat your patients like people, not like obligations. Use their preferred mode of address when greeting them, speak to them in a respectful tone of voice, and listen to them without interrupting, rushing, or displaying annoyance.
3. Find constructive ways of dealing with the stresses of the job. The daily duties of an aged care nurse can be extremely demanding, and at times even heartbreaking. Having some way of decompressing when you get home from a rough shift, such as exercising, taking a relaxing soak in the tub, or spending time with your loved ones, can be very restorative and go a long way towards promoting good mental health.
Other stress-reducing activities you might benefit from include cooking, reading, listening to music, solving puzzles, making art, doing yoga, or playing with a pet.
Try not to get so wrapped up in taking care of others that you forget to take care of yourself.
4. Learn adaptive coping strategies to lessen the grief of death. Death is an unfortunate yet inevitable part of elder care. Experienced caregivers and medical professionals recommend using “adaptive” coping as a way of processing the pain of a patient’s passing. Adaptive coping techniques may include things like positive thinking, prayer, meditation, or simply taking a few minutes to let yourself grieve freely before resuming your duties.
If you’re having a particularly hard time with a patient’s death, don’t keep it to yourself—open up to your coworkers or supervisors about it. They may be able to offer some insight into how to overcome your trauma and keep it from negatively impacting your attitude toward your work.
The more quickly you can work through the loss of a patient, the better you’ll be able to console that patient’s loved ones after they’re gone.

Tips.

Your high school diploma will make you eligible to work as a Certified Nursing Assistant (CNA) while you’re completing your education.
Aged care professionals are always in high demand, which means your prospects for employment are very good, even right out of nursing school.
Geriatric nurses pull in an average annual salary of around $65,000. This makes the job rewarding financially as well as mentally and emotionally.