Nursing assistant clinical skills checklist and competency evaluation

Focus on high-risk skills that directly impact patient safety and occur frequently. Start with proper transfer techniques, infection control practices, and vital signs measurement. These foundational skills prevent the most common adverse events. Then evaluate specialized skills based on your facility’s patient population needs and services provided.

Meet privately to discuss the results, focusing on specific skills rather than general performance. Develop a structured improvement plan with clear goals, training resources, and timeline. It’s also critical to provide opportunities for practice in a controlled environment. You can then schedule a follow-up evaluation and consider pairing them with a mentor. Document all remediation efforts.

Review your facility’s policies, common procedures, patient population needs, and equipment used. Based on these, add facility-specific skills while maintaining core competencies. Consider input from experienced staff about what skills are most critical in your setting. Don’t forget to adjust evaluation frequency based on risk level, with more frequent assessment of high-risk skills.

Provide specific examples of what was done correctly and incorrectly rather than general statements. You can also connect skills performance to patient outcomes to emphasize importance. Offer practical suggestions for improvement with resources for additional training. At the end, give encouragement and recognize strengths to maintain motivation for continued development.