Job Overview: The Montana Veterans’ Home is a long-term care facility that is licensed for 105 skilled nursing beds and 12 personal care domiciliary beds. The facility is surveyed and inspected annually by the Veterans’ Administration and the state of Montana. This position primarily provides quality recreation program activities.

Schedule: Varied

Major Duties or Responsibilities: Activities Aide provides direct care, assists nursing residents who need help with dining and provides supervision for those residents that participate in the supervised smoking program. Activities Aide functions under the direction of the Activities Supervisor, Recreation Therapist. The main purpose of the position is to provide direct social activities to residents and the secondary function is to provide security and supervision to residents who participate in the supervised smoking program under direct supervision.

A. Activities Recreation 70%

• Provide residents with quality care, demonstrate patience, empathy and motivate/inspire others.

• Assemble residents for group and individual activities; assisting the residents to scheduled activity and social functions.
• Provides input to the Activities Supervisor in the assessment of resident performance.
• Ensures resident attendance in activities programs.
• Assists in charting progress notes.
• Assists with van rides, field trips, in-house activity functions, and related activities.
• Works with individual residents in providing activity/recreational needs including: Reading and discussing books, current events, newspaper, or magazine articles; Discussing family and friends; Talking about likes and dislikes; Walking with Resident inside or outside the building.
• Works independently with Residents in activity/recreation functions such as: puzzles, board games, drawing pictures, writing letters.
• Works with volunteers and guests by assisting Residents in large group activity/recreation functions such as: Bingo; Music and Dance presentations; Guest speakers; Movies.
• Helps nursing residents to and from dining areas and assists them with feeding using special condiments, and prescribed dishes and utensils.

B. Supervised Smoking and Dining Assistance 25%

• Provides supervised smoking to policy and procedure #150, which designates smoking times, smoking areas, and the procedures to follow to ensure a safe environment for all residents.

C. Other Duties 5%

• Reviews Care plans, the Policy and Procedure Manual, the Safety Manual, and the Infection Control Manual to provide quality care and a safe environment for the Residents and Staff.
• Maintains patient confidentiality as a right of the Resident.
• Is courteous and respectful to fellow staff during attaining the required activity tasks.
• Works with and interacts with Residents in courteous and respectful manner.
• Delivers mail to Residents.
• Demonstrates teamwork and maintains a working attitude that has a positive effect on the facility environment.
• Documents residents' level of participation in Activities.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (Behaviors): Working knowledge of the rules, equipment, and procedures of a variety of recreational activities and games. Knowledge of the policies, practices, and regulations of the facility with respect to safety procedures, smoking procedures, and individuals’ rights. Working knowledge of the activities program in a long-term care facility and understanding of a geriatric population in terms of activities abilities. Working knowledge of various food texture.

Required for the first day of work:

• Knowledge of various recreation and leisure activities, ability to adapt activities, and ability to utilize resources for new activities to meet the needs of various abilities of residents.
• Follows facility smoking policy for safety of residents, staff, and visitors.
• Ability to observe and pay attention to details.
• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships.
• Time management, prioritizing tasks, and meeting deadlines, interpersonal, written, oral communication skills with confidential information.
• Knowledge of residents’ rights and confidentiality.
• Proficient in phone equipment (land lines and cellular devices), iPad, iPod, Kindle fire, DVD player, CD player, Sound System, clocks, TV’s, and work/personal computers.
• Ability to set-up, schedule, facilitate and trouble shoot technological interactions (including but not limited to Video Chats, Facetime, Zoom, e-mail).

Minimum Qualifications (Education and Experience)

• High School Diploma or Equivalent
• 1-2 years of job-related work
• Experience with the geriatric population in a long-term care facility
• Other combinations of directly related education and experience may be considered on a case-by-case basis.

Physical and Environmental Demands: Heavy lifting is required on an as-needed basis. Critical physical demands: *Lift 20# occasionally; *Push/pull 50# occasionally; *Reach forward and below frequently. A basic understanding of transferring techniques is necessary. Lifting in conjunction with moving equipment, supplies, etc., is required.

This position requires working in the long-term facility days, evenings, weekends, and holidays as scheduling requires. It also requires some exposure to cigarette smoke. May be exposed to blood borne pathogens. Must have hearing and visual acuity and color vision. Requires manual dexterity. Must be able to effectively communicate with residents and may have to work with uncooperative residents at times. Must be able to drive residents to outings in various environmental conditions: daylight, nighttime, inclement weather, rain, snow, cold and heat.