Laura Cruise
Belleville,IL
Summary
Dynamic Certified Nursing Assistant with extensive experience at Knollwood Retirement and Assisted Living, excelling in patient care and vital sign monitoring. Demonstrated leadership in managing care teams, ensuring regulatory compliance, and fostering empathetic relationships. Proficient in medication administration and committed to enhancing patient outcomes through strategic communication and attention to detail.
Overview
17
17
years of professional experience
Work History
Certified Nursing Assistant
Knollwood Retirement and Assisting Living
2025.12 - Current
- Assist Resident with activities of daily living (ADLs), including bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, eating, and mobility.
- Monitor vital signs such as blood pressure, pulse, temperature, and respiration, and report changes to nursing staff.
- Observe and document patient behavior, physical symptoms, and overall condition to support clinical decision-making.
- Provide physical support for ambulation, turning bedridden patients, and assisting with rehabilitation exercises.
- Maintain a safe and clean environment, including inspecting equipment, removing hazards, and following infection control protocols.
- Support nutritional needs, including assisting with meals, monitoring dietary restrictions, and recording intake and output.
- Communicate effectively with patients, families, and healthcare team members to ensure coordinated care.
Certified Nursing Assistant
Help At Home
2024.03 - Current
- Assist patients with activities of daily living (ADLs), including bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, eating, and mobility.
- Monitor vital signs such as blood pressure, pulse, temperature, and respiration, and report changes to nursing staff.
- Observe and document patient behavior, physical symptoms, and overall condition to support clinical decision-making.
- Provide physical support for ambulation, turning bedridden patients, and assisting with rehabilitation exercises.
- Maintain a safe and clean environment, including inspecting equipment, removing hazards, and following infection control protocols.
- Support nutritional needs, including assisting with meals, monitoring dietary restrictions, and recording intake and output.
- Communicate effectively with patients, families, and healthcare team members to ensure coordinated care.
Field Supervisor
Addus Home
2014.10 - Current
- Led day to day operations and served as a resource to subordinates, and leadership on policy, procedures, compliance, and customer service outcomes.
- Provided supervision, oversight & accountability for patients.
- Participated in voluntary and mandatory on-going education and training.
- I intervened in situations involving unsafe or inadequate care and reported them immediately to the Director of Wellness.
- Ensured resident medical needs were meet and ensured indications were set up and administered properly.
- Checked medications against medical books and identified resident prior to administration and administers medication per physician orders.
- Observed and reported resident physical and emotional condition changes, using appropriate terminology and abbreviations.
- Built a rapport with patients then provided services necessary to support patients at heightened risk for infectious diseases such as COVID-19.
- Captures critical data and health-related information from patients through the administrations of assessments to identify patients displaying symptoms of COVID-19.
Unit Secretary
Touchet Regional Hospital
2019.07 - 2021.01
- Manages multiple patient projects with competing deadlines simultaneously.
- Partners with clinical care teams assist patient is individual needs & contribute to the development of recreational and rehabilitation care plans to comply with doctors' orders and patients' abilities.
- Interprets data patient feedback & identifies trends then uses findings to evaluate workflows to identify gaps & deficits that inadvertently impact the quality of care and Delivery of patients’ rights.
- Uses observations of clinical presentations and patient progress to fine-tune care plans until desired outcomes are achieved and evidence is documented by clinical presentations.
- Ensures resident medical needs are meet and ensures medications are set up and administered properly.
- Checks medications against medical books and identifies resident prior to administration and administers medication per physician orders.
- Implements care plans at the patient contact level and monitors patient's progress.
- Serves as the first line of contact for patient complaints and advocates to clinical care teams to improve the patient experience by communicating issues before grievances occur.
Certified Medication Technician
Aberdeen Assisted Living
2013.01 - 2019.01
- Passing out medication to residents.
- Night Shift Supervisor for Certified Nursing Assistants.
- Management of Direct Care: The CNA Supervisor oversees the overall management of direct resident care, ensuring that all residents receive quality care and the resident their essential needs are met.
- Staff Coordination: They coordinate the care provided by CNAs, including documentation completion and accuracy, and maintain accountability for the care delivered.
- Training and Orientation: The CNA Supervisor is responsible for training new CNAs and assigning appropriate orientation training.
- They also document in-service training and ensure that all staff meet continuing education requirements.
- Scheduling and Staffing: They maintain the CNA work schedule, assign duties, approve or deny time-off requests, and document attendance issues such as tardiness and absences.
- Assist patients with activities of daily living (ADLs), including bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, eating, and mobility.
- Monitor vital signs such as blood pressure, pulse, temperature, and respiration, and report changes to nursing staff.
- Observe and document patient behavior, physical symptoms, and overall condition to support clinical decision-making.
- Provide physical support for ambulation, turning bedridden patients, and assisting with rehabilitation exercises.
- Maintain a safe and clean environment, including inspecting equipment, removing hazards, and following infection control protocols.
- Support nutritional needs, including assisting with meals, monitoring dietary restrictions, and recording intake and output.
- Communicate effectively with patients, families, and healthcare team members to ensure coordinated care.
Certified Medication Technician and CNA
Bethesda
2008.10 - 2013.12
- Ensured resident medical needs were meet and ensured medications were set-up and administered properly.
- Checked medications against medical books and identified resident prior to administration and administers medication per physician orders.
- Ordered medication as needed per company Policy and regulation.
Education
UPDATED I -
DERBY SCHOOL
2009-01
MEBILLING CODING -
ST COLLEGE
2006-01
CERTIFIED MEDICATION TECHNICIAN -
FOREST PARK COLLEGE
1995-01
CERTIFIED NURSING ASSISTANT (CNA) -
STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
1983-01
CERTIFIED UNIT SECRETARY AND MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY -
STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
1983-01
Skills
- Interpersonal skills
- Relationship management
- Strategic communication
- Organizational resourcefulness
- Problem solving
- Management oversight
- Attention to detail
- Empathy and compassion
- Data entry and migration
- Program development
- Moral responsibility understanding
- Technological proficiency
- Leadership courage
- Regulatory compliance enforcement
- Time management
- Diversity and inclusion awareness
- Critical thinking and crisis management
- Ethics and integrity
References
Available Upon Request
Timeline
Certified Nursing Assistant
Knollwood Retirement and Assisting Living
2025.12 - Current
Certified Nursing Assistant
Help At Home
2024.03 - Current
Unit Secretary
Touchet Regional Hospital
2019.07 - 2021.01
Field Supervisor
Addus Home
2014.10 - Current
Certified Medication Technician
Aberdeen Assisted Living
2013.01 - 2019.01
Certified Medication Technician and CNA
Bethesda
2008.10 - 2013.12
UPDATED I -
DERBY SCHOOL
MEBILLING CODING -
ST COLLEGE
CERTIFIED MEDICATION TECHNICIAN -
FOREST PARK COLLEGE
CERTIFIED NURSING ASSISTANT (CNA) -
STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE
CERTIFIED UNIT SECRETARY AND MEDICAL TERMINOLOGY -
STATE COMMUNITY COLLEGE