Nurse assistant

About this occupation

Nurse assistants provide basic patient care under direction of nursing staff. They perform duties such as feed, bathe, dress, groom, move patients or change linens and may transfer or transport patients.

A specialisation of healthcare assistant.

• Provide airway management interventions including tracheal intubation, fiber optics, or ventilary support.
• Assist anesthesiologists in monitoring of patients, including electrocardiogram (EKG), direct arterial pressure, central venous pressure, arterial blood gas, hematocrit, or routine measurement of temperature, respiration, blood pressure or heart rate.
• Control anesthesia levels during procedures.
• Administer anesthetic, adjuvant, or accessory drugs under the direction of an anesthesiologist.
• Pretest and calibrate anesthesia delivery systems and monitors.
• Respond to emergency situations by providing cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), basic cardiac life support (BLS), advanced cardiac life support (ACLS), or pediatric advanced life support (PALS).

Preparation

Job Zone 5 of 5

Interests

Conventional, Social, Investigative

Top skills: Monitoring, Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, Speaking, Active Learning, Critical Thinking

US median pay: US$135,880 a year (2025), 162,150 employed. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics.

Subjects this work relies on

How important each subject's knowledge is in the job itself, rated by people doing it (1 to 5).

• BiologyO*NET: BiologyVery important (4.4)
• English or Literature in EnglishO*NET: English LanguageVery important (4.1)
• Mathematics or StatisticsO*NET: MathematicsVery important (4.0)
• ChemistryO*NET: ChemistryVery important (3.9)
• PhysicsO*NET: PhysicsVery important (3.9)

O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

Preparation needed

Job Zone Five: Extensive Preparation Needed

Education

Most of these occupations require graduate school. For example, they may require a master's degree, and some require a Ph.D., M.D., or J.D. (law degree).

Experience

Extensive skill, knowledge, and experience are needed for these occupations. Many require more than five years of experience. For example, surgeons must complete four years of college and an additional five to seven years of specialized medical training to be able to do their job.

Training

Employees may need some on-the-job training, but most of these occupations assume that the person will already have the required skills, knowledge, work-related experience, and/or training.

O*NET data describe work in the United States; requirements differ by country. This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. CareerProof Global has modified all or some of this information; USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.