Hospital Attendant

According to experts in the medical niche, this job is expected to become more paid in the future than it is today.  So, if you want to know something more about hospital attendant meaning, keep reading.

What Does A Hospital Attendant Do?

A hospital attendant is a trained medical professional responsible for taking primary patient care under the direction of medical nurses. A hospital attendant doesn’t necessarily have to work in a hospital.

You can work in any medical centre where patients need basic care, and by basic, we mean:

  • feeding,
  • bathing,
  • moving patients,
  • grooming patients etc.

You’ll find more information about the responsibilities and duties of a hospital attendant below.

Hospital Attendant

Responsibilities & Duties

So, what are the duties of a health attendant in the hospital?

Mainly, hospital attendants help nurses prepare patients before and after the surgery.

Critically ill patients usually have to stay under the care of nurses or physicians, but a hospital attendant has a massive role in supervising other patients.

Generally, these individuals stay in the wards and alert physicians or nurses if a patient’s condition changes.

They determine the patient’s condition by relying on pulse monitoring machines and other devices. Aside from alerting medical personnel to a patient’s condition, the attendant may take steps to make such an individual more comfortable. These steps may include providing people with a simple glass of water or even an extra pillow or blanket.

To help patients, nurses, and others in medical facilities, health care attendants do simple routine tasks:

  • assisting patients with their hygiene,
  • walking,
  • getting in and out of bed,
  • delivering meals in patients hospital rooms,
  • reviewing vital signs, and keeping records,
  • changing bed sheets,
  • doing tasks that bedridden patients cannot do, such as turning on lights,
  • transporting patients to different rooms.

Hospital Attendant Duties

What Is The Qualification Of a Hospital Attendant?

To become a hospital attendant, you’ll at least need to have a high school diploma. Some of them choose additionally to complete a certificate program or earn an associate degree to learn skills for the job.

To begin pursuing a career as a hospital attendant, you typically need prior work experience in a clinical environment. It is recommended to do voluntary work before applying for a real job to gain experience working with patients. Most employers provide training in the facility, which means on-job training.

While many people employed in these jobs receive no job-specific training, others must have medical knowledge. These individuals may be necessary to change bandages, apply ointments and check the patient’s vital signs.

A hospital attendant’s qualification should start by attending training classes usually offered by a local community college or university.

Regulatory boards in many countries organise licensing and certification on hospital attendant courses for medical attendants, and many facilities require them to have acquired one of these licenses.

It would also help if you learned medical terminology, but hospital attendants are not healthcare providers. You’ll need to understand that government regulations permit you to do some things with patients.

Employers might ask you to do a physical examination and health test for illnesses like tuberculosis, infectious diseases and a drug test. Be ready also to receive a request for a criminal check.

Additional qualifications:

  • excellent interpersonal skills,
  • the ability to multitask and work as part of a team
  • a basic understanding of infection control practices.

Qualification Of a Hospital Attendant

What Is The Salary of Attendants In Hospitals In The EU?

An average hospital attendant salary in the EU depends on which country we talk about. In Germany, an average salary for a junior hospital attendant (1-3 years of experience) amounts to around 10€/hr, which ends up around 21,600€ per year. You also get a bonus, and an average bonus in Germany for hospital attendants is 145€.

If you are a senior hospital attendant (8+ years of experience), you’ll get a higher salary, somewhere around 22,600€, so around 1000€ higher.

Hospital attendant in France: that’s where you will have to settle for a slightly smaller salary than in Germany.
The average is 9,72€/hr, which pays around 20,200€ per year with a yearly bonus of around 135€/year.
Ireland pays their health care attendant somewhere around 9,85€/hr, which is 20,400€/year.

Salary of Attendants In Hospitals In The EU

Conclusion

Your work as a hospital attendant is always between assisting patients and performing physical tasks. Such as preparing a hospital room or shower area for the next patient.

No matter what jobs you undertake, you have to know that you play a significant part in a patient’s health.

Nurses and doctors often don’t have enough time to spend with each patient. That is where a health care attendant steps in and is the first to notice a significant change in a patient’s condition.

You are the one who makes the most significant relationships with patients, so the slightest change that happens, you’ll be the first one to notice.

Explore More

Blog: Meet Olga

Packing a whole life in a few boxes and leaving home town for some can be exciting, but stressful for others. There are many reasons

Read More »
en_USEN