Age-Friendly Nursing Strategies for Nursing Home CNA’s
Source: Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
Published: 2026
Summary:
In partnership with the Los Angeles Ombudsman Program, administered by WISE and Healthy Aging, the USC GWEP addresses the training needs of CNA nursing students in five local nursing homes.
Communication between patients, staff and family members is often complicated by cultural differences that impacts views about dementia and perspectives regarding critical care issues. The curriculum presents concrete strategies to identify triggers to difficult resident behavioral problems, empowering workers to address the underlying causes of the behavior and improve patient outcomes. Teaching students and CNA’s simple strategies to mitigate these communication barriers can lead to greater job satisfaction for workers and improved understanding of care needs for family members. Each lesson integrates expectations for the coordination of the strategies into daily work activities, heightening the likelihood of long-term retention and effectiveness.
- Audience: Nursing Home Administrators, Ombudsman Programs, CNA course administrators, GWEP’s, CNA students and staff
- Partners: Wise & Health Aging, Ombudsman, 5 Local Nursing homes in Los Angeles, and San Bernardino County, Alzheimer’s Los Angeles, Weill Cornell, IHI
Key Learning:
- The anticipated benefits for nursing homes and CNA staff and students include: Improved care for dementia patients, better response to dementia-related behavioral problems, consistent application of Age-Friendly principles of care, and greater CNA job satisfaction.
CNA Student Handouts (Spanish)
Link: Age-Friendly Nursing Strategies for Nursing Home CNA’s
Topics: Caregiving, Cognition/Capacity, Prevention/Intervention
Access: Download
Intended Use: Self-directed Learning
Audience: Caregivers, Health Care
Language: English, Spanish
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