How to Become a Certified Nursing Assistant

- Do enjoy enjoy caring for people? Are you looking for a quick entry into a job in the medical field? This page on how to become a certified nursing assistant - CNA will show you the steps you need to take to become licensed.

Introduction
- A CNA provides hands-on care that involves bathing, dressing, grooming and assisting with personal needs. Usually employed in medical facilities, such as hospitals, rehabilitation centers, and nursing homes, they work under the supervision of either a licensed practical nurse (LPN) or a registered nurse (RN). It is a field in which there are expected to be many more job opportunities as the baby boomer population ages and swells the ranks of elderly Americans needing care.
Step 1: Decide if Being a CNA is Right For You
- The work of a CNA can be physically and emotionally demanding, and the pay is low.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides It is fairly easy to enter the profession, however, and the work can be deeply rewarding.
Personal Characteristics Required
- The work of a CNA can be difficult, involving tasks such as emptying bedpans and dealing with disoriented, irritable, or uncooperative patients.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
1. A CNA needs to have patience and good communication skills.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
2. They need to be able to work as part of a team.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
3. The work involves standing, walking, and lifting, so a CNA needs to be fit and in good health.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
4. A criminal background check is usually required.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
5. In the United States, CNAs are usually required to read, write and speak English, in order to follow instructions, communicate with patients, and document patient care.Maine Medical Center: CNA Course
Step 2: Get Trained
- Specific requirements vary by state. Some states require a high school diploma, others do not. Federal law requires all CNAs who work in a facility which accepts Medicare funds to receive 75 hours of training, and 16 hours of supervised clinical training. State regulations may be more extensive. Training may cover topics such as nutrition, infection control, communication skills, resident rights, and how to help patients to bathe, eat, and groom themselves.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
1. Training can be provided at no cost by employers.National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Find a Na Training Or Testing Program in Your Area
2. Vocational high schools, community colleges, and independent agencies also provide CNA training.
3. The local council on aging may have info about training programs, and available grant money to pay for training.National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Find a Na Training Or Testing Program in Your Area
4. Your state's agency that licenses CNAs will also have a list of approved training programs in your area.National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Find a Na Training Or Testing Program in Your Area
Step 3: Obtain Your Certification
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- After you've completed the necessary training and passed a competency test, state law governs the level of certification required.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
1. Contact your state nurse aide registry for specific requirements.Pearson Vue: State Nurse Aide Registries
2. Be prepared to provide documentation of the training you've completed.
Reciprocity
- If you've been approved in one state, your certification is only valid in that state. If you want to work in another state, you'll need to apply for reciprocity.National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Request Reciprocity
1. Contact the state agency you received your license or certification from, tell them where you're moving, and ask for an "Application for Enrollment By Reciprocity".National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Request Reciprocity
2. Contact the new state and ask what their procedures are.National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Request Reciprocity
3. In addition to the application you'll probably need to include a copy of your social security card, your driver's license, your current state approval, as well as documentation of work experience, such as a pay stub from the facility you were previously employed by.National Network of Career Nursing Assistants: How to Request Reciprocity
Step 4: Working as a CNA

The job market for CNAs is projected to increase 28% between 2006 and 2016 in response to the long-term care needs of a growing population of elderly citizens.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides The exact procedures that a CNA may perform will vary between states. In general, they provide assistance with activities of daily living and report on the patient's condition to the nursing staff. In some states, CNAs can administer certain medications and perform simple medical procedures, such as checking vital signs.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides Maine Medical Center: CNA Course Although most CNAs work in institutional settings, such as nursing homes or rehabilitation centers, some also work for agencies providing home health services.
Institutional Certified Nursing Assistants
- In nursing facilities, CNAs are generally the primary caregivers for residents.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
1. CNAs often help patients to eat, dress, and bathe.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
2. They may also perform light housekeeping tasks such as making beds.Bureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
3. CNAs transport, lift, and position patients.Maine Medical Center: CNA Course
Home Health Care Certified Nursing Assistants
- CNAs who work in for home health care agencies provide health related services to elderly, convalescent or disabled patients in their own homes. Home health Care CNAs generally provide fewer personal care services,and more health related services, as personal care services may be provided by non-licensed personal care aids.Some of the medical services home health care CNAs provide, under the supervision of a doctor or registered nurse, are:
1. Administering oral medicationsBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
2. Checking patients' vital signsBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
3. Assisting patients with performing simple prescribed exercisesBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
4. Changing nonsterile dressingsBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
5. Providing skin careBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
6. Assisting with braces and artificial limbsBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
7. Operating medical equipment such as ventilatorsBureau of Labor Statistics: Nursing, Psychiatric, and Home Health Aides
Conclusion
- Job prospects for CNAs are good, and training and licensing can usually be completed in under a month. If you decide that this is a career you'd like to pursue, you can quickly be on your way to a job as a certified nursing assistant.