Nurse Aides, Orderlies, and Patient Attendants
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Job description
These individuals help nurses, hospital staff, and physicians. They provide assistance in giving basic care to patients. They work in:
- Hospitals
- Rehabilitation centres
- Residential and long-term care centres (CHSLDs)
- Local Community Service Centres (CLSCs)
Environment
- Controlled ambient temperature
- Hazardous chemical
- Biological agents
- Odours
- Hazardous workplaces
- Violence
Main tasks
- Assist patients in their daily routine (washing, feeding, turning, dressing, etc.).
- Organize and propose activities to patients and accompany them.
- Supervise series of exercises performed by patients.
- Provide basic medical care (measuring vital signs, administering first aid, taking urine samples, etc.) as directed by nursing and hospital staff.
- Prepare and drive patients who are to undergo treatment or surgery.
- Deliver messages, reports, requests, and specimens from one department to another.
- Make beds and ensure the cleanliness of the rooms.
- Maintain supply inventory.
- Install, maintain, wash, sterilize, and repair equipment.
- Transport patients from one health care facility to another, as required.
Hourly wage
The hourly wage is calculated by averaging wages from 2022 to 2024.- Minimum
- $19.00
- Median
- $25.00
- Maximum
- $27.90
Job prospects for 2024-2028
Les 2 champs de sélection ci-dessous vous permettent de comparer 2 régions. Les données des régions seront automatiquement mises à jour à la sélection. Par défaut, la province de Québec est sélectionnée pour la première région.
Job prospects for 2024-2028
Job prospects
All of Québec
Non available
Limited
Good
Very good
Very good
All of Québec
Non available
Limited
Good
Very good
Non available
Total jobs for 2023
All of Québec
84,000
All of Québec
na
Gender distribution
All of Québec
Not available.
- 82.7% Female
- 17.3% Male
Not available.
- 82.7% Female
- 17.3% Male
Job types
All of Québec
Not available.
- Full time
- Part time
Not available.
- Full time
- Part time
Yearly wage on 2020
All of Québec
$46,400
All of Québec
Other characteristics
All of Québec
- Non traditional for men
- None
All of Québec
- Non traditional for men
- None
Sectors of activity
All of Québec
Not available.
-
NAICS 621, 622, 62390% of jobs
-
NAICS 6243% of jobs
-
NAICS 813% of jobs
-
NAICS 55, 562% of jobs
-
NAICS 911% of jobs
-
Others1% of jobs
All of Québec
Not available.
-
NAICS 621, 622, 62390% of jobs
-
NAICS 6243% of jobs
-
NAICS 813% of jobs
-
NAICS 55, 562% of jobs
-
NAICS 911% of jobs
-
Others1% of jobs
Training and requirements
Formation
Most training programs are offered in French only.
Secondary
DVS in institutional and Home Care Assistance
Code : 5858
Placement rate: 78.8%
15.1% of graduates pursue further studies
Also required
- Supervised practical training.
Sometimes required
- Training in principles for moving clients safely (PDSB) is often required.
- Training in first aid and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is often required.
- A Class 5 driver’s licence may be required or an asset.
Orderlies and Health and Social Services Assistants:
- A 5-month accelerated training program (705 hours) leading to a Skills Training Certificate (STC) in Support for Assistive Services in Health and Social Services Institutions sometimes followed.
Main skills and characteristics
Skills
- Data collection
- Service oriented
- Social perception
- Time management
- Information processing
- Active listening
- Oral expression
Abilities
- Oral comprehension
- Core strength
- Static muscle power
- Verbal skills
- Speech recognition
- Awareness of issues
- Near vision
- Speech clarity
- Physical flexibility in extension
- Manual dexterity
- Endurance
- Overall balance of the body
- Dynamic strength
- Explosive strength
Knowledge and attributes
- Capacity to establish and maintain interpersonal relations
- Autonomy
- Knowledge of customer and personalized services
- Honesty
- Sense of initiative
- Capacity to be discrete
- Vitality
- Friendliness
- Respect others
- Patience
Interests
- Work manually
- Assist and advise
- Assist or care for people
Personality profiles (RIASEC)
- Social
- People with this profile prefer to be in contact with others, in particular to entertain, help or teach them.
- Realistic
- People with this profile prefer carrying out concrete tasks and being physically involved in what they do.
- Conventional
- People with this profile prefer specific, well-defined tasks. They like to respect the order of things and follow established rules.
Official name of the NOC 33102
Nurse aides, orderlies and patient service associates
Job titles
- Personal support aide - medical
- Patient care assistant
- Medical orderly
- First aid attendant
- Geriatric health care attendant
- Patient service aide
- Personal care aide - medical
- Hospital service aide - medical
- Registered care aide
- Nursing services aide
- Long term care aide
- Respite care aide
- Patient care aide
- Special care aide - nursing
- Institutional aide
- Hospital aide
- Unit aide - medical
- Hospital ward aide
- Nursery aide - hospital
- Operating room aide
- Emergency room aide
- Surgical aide
- Hostel service aide - medical
- Geriatric aide
- Neuropsychiatric aide
- Psychiatric aide
- Health care aide
- Medical aide
- Nurse aide
- Resident care aide - medical
- Nursing assistant (non-registered)
- Emergency medical care attendant (non-paramedical)
- Patient service assistant
- Unit assistant - medical
- Service assistant - medical
- Support services assistant - medical
- Environmental assistant - medical
- Continuing care assistant
- Health care assistant
- Patient service associate
- Patient care associate
- Service associate - medical
- Hospital orderly
- Emergency medical care assistant
- Resident companion - medical
- Escort - health services
- Personal care provider - medical
- Environmental support person - medical
- Hospital porter
- Medical attendant - patient transfer
- Anesthetic attendant - hospital
- Patient service attendant
- Personal support worker – nursing care
- Service attendant - medical
- Nursing attendant
- Personal care attendant - medical
- Hospital attendant
- Nursing home attendant
- Special care facility attendant
- Emergency medical responder (non-paramedical)
- Unit support technician - medical
- Patient service worker
- Hospice worker
- Special care worker - medical
Skill type
Health
Last update: January 29, 2026
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