By
Lanee’ Blunt
To
work in any state a CNA must have a certification. A certified nurse aide is responsible for helping their patients with their daily living needs. They take care of elderly
and disabled patients that are in long-term care facilities, hospitals,
home-care and hospice. They are not licensed health care professionals such as
registered nurse, or a licensed practical nurse. They must have a certificate
in the state in which they work and their name must be listed on a registry.
Admission Requirements
In
order for a candidate to be accepted into a training program they must meet
certain requirements. They must have a high school diploma or GED, and be at
least 18 years of age. For some schools they require a health exam as well as
having immunizations up to date. A criminal background check and must pass a
drug test. Some training programs require that candidates have two letters of
reference.
Classes
The
program offers a student a wide range of training. The first part is theory and
lecture, in which you will learn medical terms, how to preform patient related
duties, and master the skills necessary to assist health care professionals in
giving patient care. These skills will be giving that is consistent with the
state outlined for nursing assistants. At the end of the class the student will
know how to perform basic nursing skills, care for impaired patients, perform
personal care needs, and measure vital signs, such as take blood pressure and
temperature.
About the Program
The
Certified Nurse Aide is a one semester program if taking in a community college
it is one ten credit hour course. You can take the course online also because
some community colleges offer distance learning in which the student can
complete all of the course work over the internet and come in for lab work. The
length of the class will vary from state to state and in some states it is 30
hours of training and others it may be as high as 150 hours of training however,
keep in mind that this depends on the state in which you take your training. Some
courses may be taken in few weeks and some in a few months depending on if you
take your training in college because it will last for one semester.
Cost of Training
The
training is not free and it will depend on where you take your classes it may range
from $200 to $2,800 for tuition. There are also financial aid programs, loans,
and scholarships to help you with your tuition.
Reference:
BLS: Nursing Aides, Orderlies, and Attendants
