By
Lanee’ Blunt
A
certified nursing assistant is an important component in a healthcare facility.
They are responsible for helping people with basic care, and daily living
activities. They assist their patients with personal hygiene such as bathing,
grooming, combing hair and dressing. Help patients to and from the bath room
and with bedpans. A nursing aide performs medical procedures such as, taking
blood pressure, temperature, giving whirlpools, and collecting specimens. They
turn patients and transfer them to their beds and wheelchairs, and document all
patient’s health concerns and services.
Becoming a certified nurse aide
A
nursing assistant has to be certified before they can work in a healthcare
facility. There is no college degree required and if you wish to work in the
medical field this is a great way to enter. According to the Bureau of Labor
Statistics, the job outlook is expected to grow faster than many other
occupations due to the rise of the elderly population.
Prerequisites for Training
You
will be required to have a high school diploma or GED. There are some
vocational schools that require students that are working on their high school
diploma while going to vocational school. The age requirement is 18 years of
age.
Health
exam is required in some schools as well as having your immunization up to date.
They will need to have proof of a TB skin test.
Most
CNA training programs require that you have a criminal background check and pass
your drug test.
In
some community colleges will require that you to have two letters of reference.
How to enroll in a Program
Visit
the CNA training program site, or call. Apply to a training program. Carefully
fill out the information that is required this will be age, high school diploma
or GED, proof of immunizations. Submit the application form and register. Pay
for your class.
Where to Find CNA Courses
Technical Schools
Check
vocational schools and technical schools in your area. There are some that
offer training and are even free for qualified students. Financial aid is
available for low income students and unemployed people that want to re-enter
the workforce and retrain for a new career.
Community College
It
is a certificate program that is only one semester. In community college you
will learn how to work in a nursing home, hospital, and home care. The course
will teach you theory and care-giving skills and after completion you will be
qualified to take the state examination.
The Red Cross
The best thing about taking your training with
the Red Cross is that a lot of employers feel confident with your training. The
class sizes are small and taught and supervised by registered nurses. Each chapter meets state and federal requirements. They do not have free training
classes but the tuition is affordable. You will be able to take the state exam
after training and they help their students find employment.
Online programs
You
must know how to use a computer to take your classes online because you will
have to save your work in a word processing program in a doc file or a text
file and upload it to your instructor. You will need an internet connection, web
streaming capabilities, web browser such as Chrome, Firefox, Safari or Internet
explorer. The clinical experience will be taken at a nursing home, or volunteer
work at a hospital, or where the community college provides the laboratory
setting and in a long- term care facility. Students must complete all work on
time and meet requirements to take the Certified Nurse Aide Examination for CNA
certification.
Training Needed
You
can complete the training in 6 to 12 weeks. This may vary from state to state
and from different schools but the classes are medical terminology,
introduction to health care, nursing arts I, II, III and CNA clinical courses. All
aspect of patient care will be taught to you by lectures with demonstrations
and practice. The clinical class works directly with patients in a health care
facility.
The Exam
There
two parts of the examination. The written test will cover all of the things
that you have been learning in your program. The clinical test is a practical
test and will be based on what you have learned in the clinical classes. You
will be allowed to take the test up to a total of three times to if you didn’t
pass it.
Reference:
WCCC:
Certified Nurse Aide (CNA)
