Certified Medication Aides in Long Term Care Facilties

The medication aide program is an exciting opportunity for State Tested Nursing Assistants (STNAs) to advance their education and climb the health career ladder. Since the pilot program began in May of 2006, STNAs have expressed a growing interest in the medication aide position. STNAs who are on the waiting list for nursing school have found this program to be very beneficial to their education. 

After the pilot program ended on March 26, 2009, any long-term care facility or assisted living facility in the state of Ohio was able to employ certified medication aides, a group of employees who are making a huge impact on the nursing care of our residents. They are also having a positive impact on the nurses as well. At Lakewood Senior Health Campus, the nursing staff finds the medication aides to be a wonderful asset to the health care team. Nurses have long valued the team work that passes between the STNA and the charge nurse in long term care.  With the addition of the certified medication aides, the team is further enhanced and functions very well. Medication aides are an integral part of the health care team and have been employed by facilities in other parts of the country for many years. 

One of the purposes of the program is to reduce reliance on agency nurses; this obviously is realized in financial savings for the facility.  Generally, the quality of care is also improved since regular staff members are more familiar with the residents and their needs and preferences. In addition, utilizing medication aides frees the nurses to spend more time with the residents, thus further improving the quality of care within the facility. The staff retention rate is increased; some of the medication aides have continued climbing the health career ladder by graduating from nursing school and joining the ranks of the professional nursing staff.   

In order to become a certified medication aide, the applicant must meet certain criteria as established in the Ohio Laws and Rules Chapter 4723-27 ORC, which can be found on the Ohio Board of Nursing website. Before the STNA can enroll in the medication aide program, he/she must be a minimum of 18 years old, have either a high school diploma or GED, and be listed on the STNA Registry in good standing. An employee of an assisted living facility must have at least one year of direct care experience in a residential care facility. The prospective student must also pass a Test of Adult Basic Education (TABE). This test focuses on the individual’s English and language comprehension skills, as well as math skills. 

Training programs are required to provide a minimum curriculum of 120 hours which includes 80 hours of lecture/lab and 40 hours of clinical experience administering medications to residents. At Lakewood Senior Health Campus, the total classroom hours are greater than the minimum required, allowing more time to cover information such as:

·      Medical Terminology

·      Dosage Preparation

·      Reference Sources           

·      Proper Storage & Disposal of Drugs

·      Routes of Medication Administration

·      Six Rights of Medication Administration

·      Circumstances for Reporting to the Charge Nurse

·      Anatomy & Physiology of the Body Systems ( related to medication usage)

·      Basic Pharmacology

·      Role and Function of the Medication Aide

·      Proper Positioning of the Resident for Medication Administration

·      Obtaining Apical Pulse and Blood Pressure Measurements

In order to successfully pass the program, the student must demonstrate competency in the practice lab and in the clinical setting. Before the student can participate in the clinical setting, he/she must have successfully completed the lecture and lab components. The student then applies to take the State Certification Test which is administered by D&S Diversified Technologies, an independent testing organization. In order to pass the state test, the student must achieve 80% on the written portion of the test and perform the skills test without error. Lastly, the student must then submit an application for certification to the Ohio Board of Nursing. Each medication aide is required to obtain continuing education credits as well.

The medication aide is permitted to administer oral, topical, nasal spray or drops/ointment to eyes, ears, or nose, rectal and vaginal medications, and inhalants. The medication aide is not permitted to give the initial dose of a newly-ordered medication, or any schedule II drugs. He or she cannot give any injections, oxygen, or medications via a gastric feeding tube, or nasal-gastric tube, or administer IV meds, or medications that require a dose calculation. The medication aide is not allowed to receive any orders from physicians or other prescribing personnel. He or she works under the delegation of the nurse and does not make decisions to give “as needed” medications to the resident without first consulting with the charge nurse. They are a team working in harmony for the benefit of the residents.

More information on Medication Aides may be obtained by going to the Board of Nursing website:  http://www.nursing.ohio.gov/medicationAides.htm